A Sad Day at the Doggy Park

I witnessed a sad event at the doggy park today. One minute, a beautiful bouncy golden retriever was happily playing catch with his owner; the next minute, he had a heart attack/seizure and collapsed.  His dad and two other dog people got down and started performing CPR on him. The rest of us just stood there feeling useless.

The scene was heartbreaking.  Three people frantically trying to save a beautiful dog. We were all hoping that the dog would start breathing.  He never did.  In matter of minutes, he was gone.  His dad was in shock.  He sat there staring at his dog and he kept saying that it wasn't supposed to be like this... The rest of us stood around them speechless.  We went through a short but traumatic event together.  We all shared the pain because it could have been one of our dogs.

The doggies seemed to sense that something was wrong as they all came over to check out the dog.  I told Dexter and Victor to step back and they did.

The owner had to carry the dog to his car.  He picked him up and started walking.  He had this dazed look.  It was a very long walk.  I walked with him in silence.  He said he still could not process this whole thing just yet.  He wanted to cry but he was still trying to catch up with all his emotions.  Seeing him carrying his lifeless dog just broke my heart.  I was having a hard time processing what I just witnessed too.  It seemed so unreal.  They were playing catch.  That was all.

Dexter and Victor stayed close to me as we walked the owner and his dog to the parking lot.  Victor kept sniffing the doggy. He didn't like him being carried and not moving.

As we went back to our car, Dexter and Victor walked along side me as always. I felt very sorry and sad that the other owner had to carry his dog out of the park instead.

RIP, little buddy.  Your dad said at least you died while doing something you like.

Shirley Found - on the Other Side of the Rainbow Bridge

Shirley's parents let everyone know that they found Shirley's body today.  She died about a week ago after being struck by a train.

I have thought about the worst since Shirley has not been sighted since last Sunday.  I thought she might have succumbed to her injury or her disease or die from exhaustion or hunger.  I would never have thought - and I'm sure her parents and all who follow her story - that she would be killed by a train at the end.

It's so tragic and it is the worst of worst outcome imaginable.

RIP Shirley, the missing Great Dane from Philly.   At least you are no longer lost. God bless you and your parents.

Updated 09/17/12: Community Mourns Shirley

Finding Shirley

I have been following this little story on Facebook about a 3-year old Great Dane that gone missing for the past 10 days.  Shirley is her name.  Shirley was hit by a car when her mom was taking her out of the car.  She was startled, bolted, and disappeared into the woods.

Shirley's story unfolded in Germantown, a neighborhood of Philadelphia.  Apparently, it has a huge woodsy area because Shirley ran into the woods and has been lost for the past two weeks (since August 29th).

The story got me because as a dog parent, I can relate to the pain, the fear and the heartbreak.  Any pet parent can relate.  It's just like your human child gone missing.  I can't imagine losing any of my dogs.  Fortunately, I never had to experience it with Beau, Max and DuDu.  I'm praying that I would never have to go through such horror with Dexter and Victor.

Shirley's mom has been frantically looking for her.  To complicate things, the mom is in graduate school with a heavy class load, the dad is in the military hundreds of miles away and he is deploying to Afghanistan in two weeks.  Worst, Shirley is injured and has a medical condition called the Addison's Disease.

What's Addison's Disease?  According to Wikipedia, it's a disorder that occurs when the adrenal glands fail to produce enough hormones to keep the body functioning normally.  Without medication, the bodily functions will go haywire and will result in death.

What a horrible combination!  The added worry and the stress must be unbearable.  My heart goes out to Shirley and her parents.

Many people are involved in finding Shirley.  There is a search going on right now as I type this.  The searchers are racing against time.  If Shirley is not found this week and treated, she will for sure die.  It hurts to think that she will die of pain, suffering in loneliness and fear.

I follow the development through the Facebook posts.  Strangers from all over the world pour their hearts out to support the parents.  People volunteer to look for Shirley day and night.  It's at times like this that the best side of we humans shines: compassion, love, generosity and devotion.

It's already past 8pm in Philadelphia.  No words from the search group.  I can only hope for the very best for Shirley and her parents.

We all know that we will eventually part with our pets.  However, not like this.

So say a prayer to the Dog God and hug your dog a little bit tighter tonight, peeps.

Creative Solutions

Most of the elevated dog feeders sold are still too low for the big boys.  Robert and I have looked into buying the ones for big dogs but the feeders are big and bulky and expensive.  It's like highway robbery.  *sigh*

So Robert and I have been looking at alternatives.  He was even going to build something himself but we actually found something better and inexpensive!!

Solution #1:  Can you tell what is this?  It's actually a table without the glass top.  Robert got it at a thrift store for just few bucks.  Being a designer he just knew what to do with it.  Flip it over and use the legs to hold the bowls.  Easy!  Simple!  Isn't he just clever??

Solution #2: While browsing in Goodwill today, I found two tall cast iron plant stands.  I thought heck, if the bowls can't fit, then I can still use them as plant stands like they were originally for.  So we bought them, took them home, and tried the bowls.  It was a perfect fit!!

This is why we love checking out thrift stores.  You never what you can find and you can always come up with good uses with the finds.  

Let's give ourselves a pat on the back!!

Double Dane for Keng

VICTOR IS OFFICIALLY A KENG!  After staying as a guest for the past two and a half months, he will now call Club JoLin his permanent home.

Victor's mom decided to give Victor up even though she has found a pet-friendly place.  Reason is that it's a condo with no outdoor space and Victor will most likely be crated and stay alone for most of the day during weekdays.  She just couldn't do that to this little happy rumbustious pup especially now he had two months of open space and companion.

So Alica asked if we would like to keep Victor for good.  Robert was, of course, more than willing.  YES-YES-YES!!!  I'll take him!

Dexter and Victor are great buds.  They are like two peas in a pod.  Dexter has grown into the big brother role.  He takes care of Victor and actually tells him what to do.  Victor is like, whatever you say, big bro.  Their canine communication is awesome.  It's just like human's.

We are thrilled to have Victor.  What a wonderful addition to the family!  The only thing is Robert will have to get used to picking up a 50-pound bag of dog food every two weeks.  It's back to double everything (like when we had Max and Dudu).

Double Dane!

THINGS HAPPEN AT THE RIGHT PLACE AT THE RIGHT TIME SOMETIMES.  I was browsing through the pet forum on Craigslist yesterday and I came across a posting that asked if someone can temporarily take in a Great Dane because the owner is in the process of moving, starting a new job and looking for a pet-friendly place to rent.

The owner could not bear to give up the dog and was hoping that someone could just keep him for a while.  I thought how heartbroken I would be if I have to give up my Dexter (or my other dogs in the past) so I forwarded the posting to Robert to see if he was interested.

Robert, of course, all excited, wanted to host Victor - that's the dog's name.  He has been wanting to get another Dane to keep Dexter company.  Realistically, I don't think having a second Dane is a good idea.  However, how would I know?  He is the one who would take care of the dogs.  So, this is actually a pretty good arrangement.  We get to check out the idea in real life and we would be helping out another dog parent.

So, I emailed the owner.  It turned out to be a nice girl in Sacramento.  She was thrilled!  She brought Victor over this morning for the two Dane boys to meet.  Robert met them at the doggy park.  The boys like each other.  So, Victor is home now and we are now a two-Dane family, on a temporary basis.

From reading the posting to having Victor staying, it took less than 24 hours.  It was not on the agenda before yesterday but, heck, things happen and we just add a new chapter to our lives.  And, I hope we preserve a chapter for Alica and Victor as well.

Alica is moving from Scramento to SF today and starting her new job next Monday.  Victor, a beautiful blue Great Dane puppy, will call Club JoLin home and Dexter his big brother for the next couple of months.

Something is just meant to be - such as this turn of event - so, just join us for the ride!

Dexter: Guardian of Little Goldfish

Ever since our lily pond was destroyed by "something" and most of the goldfish got eaten, Dexter has become concerned of the fish.  Every time he gets outside, he goes check on the fish - by the way, we put 20 new fish in last week - I wonder if he counts them too??? 

Great Danes are not known to be guard dogs.  Heck, Dexter, true to his breed, is afraid of his own shadow sometimes.  He hates being chased by his leash.  Ever seen a big dog trying to run away from his leash that's dragging behind him?  He can't understand why he can't outrun it.  The faster he runs, the faster and the louder the leash goes.  The look on his face is pretty hilarious.  If you ever see a mantel Great Dane being chased by a red leash, that's Dexter.

Sorry, I digress. .. so Robert told me that he found out who the fish killer was.  Dexter started barking at 2am this morning.  That's unusual because he is usually soundly asleep (and snores too).  Robert looked out - he thought the burglars were back - and he saw not one but TWO raccoons by the pond checking out the fish.  HA!!  I told you it must have been raccoons!!  He said they were fat and had big black eyes like bandits.  So he ran to open the door and Dexter took off after the raccoons.  Robert said Dexter chased them across the yard and made them climb the fence to escape.  Wow... my fearless dog!! 

We are so proud of him!!   I guess we wouldn't have been surprised if Dexter went hiding but he didn't.  Like a responsible guardian that he appointed himself to be, he defended his little friends.  What a trooper!  What a raccoon chaser!  What a fish protector!  What a dog!

Remember, Great Danes were bred to hunt wild boars in ancient times.  I guess Dexter still has that DNA in him.  Just don't drag a raccoon back.  I don't want it.  Fish Killer.

Good Boy, Dexter!

A Matching Set of Bookends

Dexter and Cleo do not know each other. Heck, their humans don't know each other. By chance, Cleo's human found Dexter's picture on my Flickr page and commented that she had a "bookend" picture of her doggy. Wow! No kidding!

How funny that the doggies had almost the same posture and the same expression. Yet, the pictures were taken at two different times. Cleo's was in April and Dexter's was just last week and look! One is Black and White and one is White and Black. Too cute!!

I just had to produce a "bookend" picture to share. Dexter and Cleo saying HELLO to each other somewhere through time and through cyberspace.

Happy Birthday, Dexter!

The little puppy no longer. Dexter turns one year old today. He went from a 40 pounder to 100 in 9 months. Maybe more, not sure, because we can't find a scale big enough to weigh him. My last attempt was when he was at 70 pounds and when I was still able to lift him to a human scale.

The little pup is now much taller than me when standing on his two hind legs. He likes doing that too just to make a point. He is tall enough to see what's on the counter and what's cooking on the stove. HAZARDOUS!! His nose was cinched a little by the heat last week because he was too close to the range. Luckily, Dexter doesn’t know the taste of human food so he has no idea what good stuff he is missing.

The little pup is becoming a good communicator. He is very good at using his front paws to get your attention. It’s his version of high-5. Be careful though, a whack from him will send you spinning. Dexter also has a “man voice” now – that’s what the store manager at Pet Food Express said. No more puppy yelp. He now has a commending bark that echoes. He is a dog with few words but you do have to listen to him when he has something to say because he will stand in front of you and talk until you take notice.

Dexter still has cute little white teeth and big floppy ears. The ears still flip backward like he is wearing them in buns. Other dog people have told us that it will happen less because the ears will stiffen up as he gets older.

So how much more will Dexter grow? Don’t know yet. He will stay on puppy food until at least one and a half years old. He should be around 140 or 150 when he is full grown. At last measurement, he was about 30” tall at shoulder and 41” long but that was three months ago. He is still small compared to some Great Danes in the park but I’m not complaining. He is just right in my opinion.

So, happy happy birthday my little four-legged man! Great to have you here and it’s even greater that you share the same birthday as Grandpa.

A Conversation Between Dogs

Missing DuDu

Happy Birthday, Dudu! You would have been 13 today. You would have been called a senior dog but I bet you wouldn’t have looked like one.

Daddy and Mommy miss having you around. Your favorite apple tree is blooming now. We’re sad that you won't be here to pick your apples.

Are you with Max, Beau and Finnigan? Is Max still the inquisitive one? Is Beau still the distinguished one? Is Finnigan still the protective one? God, we miss you all.

A big WOOF-WOOF to you. HAPPY HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

My Little Dream Came True

Ever since I was a teenager, I always dreamed of owning a Jeep Wrangler. Yes, a convertible Jeep sparkling under the bright sun. Me driving and a dog sitting next to me and together coasting down along a scenic road…. Ahhh…doesn’t that sound just cool... Every time I start my little daydreaming, RK would ask why a dog and not him. Well… I got this dream way before I met you, babe.

Unexpectedly, my dream came true two weeks ago. I was browsing through craigslist, and this perfect Wrangler popped up. It was exactly the one I wanted: a hardtop, black-on-black Sahara. Yes, I was very particular with the one I want. No 4-door, no soft-top, no dual color tone and it has to be an automatic….

RK and I went to check it out up in Petaluma. It was a 2007 beauty with 9,743 miles. One look and I knew it was mine.

We had a gorgeous weekend and I took the top down for the very first time. Dexter got in, poked his head out the top. We posed for the camera. RK said we were too color-coordinated. Well, I guess it was meant to be.

Dexter’s Tale: A Day in the Park

Robert and I took Dexter to the San Mateo doggy park last week figured that we should let him get used to being with other doggies.

We've taken him to Point Isabel couple of times but he did not have a chance at full play. For one, he did not have all his shots. Two, it was right next to open water and we weren’t sure if he was going to jump in and swim away.

The doggy park at the San Mateo Shoreline Park looked to be a safe place for his first social outing. It was clean, spacious and enclosed by chain-link fence. It was even divided into big dog and small pooch areas and a rest area for their people too – very thoughtful.

SET ME FREE! We first didn’t want to let Dexter walk off-leash. Never have done that with him outside of the house and didn’t know how he was going to behave being with so many new dogs. So for the first 10 minutes or so, I kept him on the long leash while he got acquainted with his new friends. One dog person suggested that we set Dexter free and let him play at will. She said the doggies would know that he was a puppy and would treat him accordingly. Dexter would have a chance to use his puppy skills naturally. Besides, where could he go anyway? Good point. So Dexter was set free.

DOG GONE WILD. Actually, Dexter behaved beautifully. He was friendly, curious and playful. He had no problem with doggies licking him all over. He did not bully little dogs and he endured the big ones checking him out. Won’t be for long though… Dexter will be bigger than any of them in no time soon.

It was a blast seeing the doggies at play. They knew exactly what to do and their communication to each other was amazing. It was fun watching them wagging tails, taking turns chasing each other around and the most important sniff-sniff - and respectfully too! It was controlled chaos.

These were the lucky dogs who got love and attention and the luxury of play. I thought of the million more doggies in the shelters and wished they could all have such an opportunity…


Dexter was exhausted and as dirty as he could be at the end. He is now officially broken in.

Puppy, Incoming

What Does It Mean? Sleepless nights, constant watching, can’t leave him out of sight, can’t go anywhere without taking him along, going to the vet, feeding, and scooping after him…

The New Kid: Dexter. A little 14 weeks old Great Dane that RK and I found on craigslist on 1/24/09. He has already had 2 families since his birthday on 10/1/08. We hope this family is where he will grow up to be a happy doggy.

RK and I didn’t expect to pick up a puppy. We were looking for an older dog – like Max and Dudu. We found Dexter by chance. His previous mom said that her older dog just would not allow him in the house. We went to her house to check him out. One look and we knew that he was destined to go home with us. The puppy eyes did it...

We have forgotten what it takes to care for puppies. Max came to us when he was one year old and Dudu about four. They were both very calm and required little training after a brief “orientation.” So, it was a reality check when Dexter came home.

It’s like being parents. RK has the tasks of taking care of him since Dexter is with him and I have the tasks of looking for puppy social groups and training classes and we only do puppy talks now. Ugh!

Yet, we miss you, Max, Dudu.

It's So Hard to Say Good Bye

Dudu Keng: 5/29/1996 - 12/12/2008

Robert and I had to say good-bye to Dudu today. His kidney failed and he was not responding to treatment. Dr. Kim said best to let him go because he was suffering. Robert and I knew it was the best for Dudu but does it hurt to make that decision.

The pain was just as bad as when we had to let Max go. It never gets easier. Knowing that no one will be waiting at the door is heartbreaking. No wagging, no running in circles, no demanding for hugs and treats... life is so different without Max then and Dudu now.

Dudu. His name meant round and chubby in Chinese. Yap, he was a chubby puppy running fast on 4 stubby legs. He grew to become quite a handsome boy. He had thought that he could be the alpha dog in the house but gave up after trying for a day. Max was Mr. Alpha. Dudu wasn't sour though. He was happy to be the little brother following Max around. they were inseparable.

Dudu became our only son when Max passed away. He filled the void left by Max and eased our pain of losing Max. He faithfully kept Robert company when he worked in the wee hours. He rather stayed with Robert and sleep on the floor than in his doggy bed in the bedroom.

It's so true that dogs are man's special friends. They never complain and never ask for anything in return. We are truly lucky to be selected as their best friends.

Rest in peace, Dudu. Thank you for all the love and joy. You were a wonderful doggy and it was a privilege to be your mommy and daddy.