Wednesday, November 30, 2005
It is still quite warm here in Florida so when we go on walks in the afternoons, the boys are warm and panting by the time we get home. Well, one of Henry’s favorite places to lay after a long warm walk is on the cool tile floor. Well, yesterday after a nice walk, Henry decided he needed a bed friend to cozy up to after his walk. So, when he got home, he went to his toy basket, grabbed his ducky buddy and hugged up to it on the cool tile floor.
Sunday, November 27, 2005
On Sunday, we decided to put up the tree for Christmas. Trimming the tree is an all day process and needless to say Benjamin & Henry didn’t have much fun. But the boys took it all in stride knowing that they need to have a tree in order for Santa to leave them presents.
Wednesday, November 23, 2005
Benjamin is thankful for his “Puffy”. He has had this furry, little disc since he was a puppy and he likes to have it near him at all times. He takes it to bed with him every night and some days I have to convince him to leave the “Puffy” at home when we go on walks.
Henry is thankful for his new swimming pool and yard. There is nothing he likes to do more than to play fetch in the pool and to sun himself in the yard.
Benjamin and Henry are both thankful to have a brother to share all of their adventures. They have been “brothers” since Benjamin was 13 weeks old and Henry was 12 weeks old. They have had countless wrestling matches, been on thousands of walks together and have tag teamed too many dogs to count at the dog park. They go together like peas and carrots!
![]()
Cupid, Benjamin & Henry’s sister, is thankful for her new freedom to go outside in the screened-in area and in the yard while carefully supervised. She loves to chase all the bugs and to munch on some grass while in the yard. She has a hard time showing it, but she is thankful to have two brothers too.
Finally, I am thankful for my family, friends and my fantastic furkids. They bring so much joy to my life and can always put a smile on my face. In addition, I am also thankful for all of the wonderful memories I have of the late Lou C.
Last but not least, I am also very thankful for all the OwnedByPugs.com visitors. It is fun and exciting to share your pug stories with others that are passionate about pugs. Thanks for reading!
Happy Thanksgiving!
Monday, November 21, 2005
This weekend we attended a local Doggie Fest. The event was a lot of fun and there were lots of contests to enter. Henry entered the “Best Smile” and “Most Unusual Looking” competitions and Benjamin entered the “Curliest Tail” and “Best Wag” competitions.
The boys had fun at the event and Benjamin took home 2nd place in the “Curliest Tail” competition. Imagine a pug only coming in second place in a curliest tail competition! First place went to an Akita that had a unique kink in his tail.
Thursday, November 17, 2005
This diet has worked very well for our pugs over the years, however, I recommend you check with your vet before switching your dog’s food. We worked very closely with our vet to determine what to feed our pugs and since every situation is different I strong encourage you to work with your vet if you want to create a special diet for your pug.
Well, as you can see by the above photo there is a lot of work that goes into the preparation of the boys’ meals. Their special diet began when Benjamin developed Pancreatitis. He was a very sick little boy and had to be in the hospital for 4 days. Pancreatitis is difficult to diagnose and really to this day we aren’t completely convinced that the diagnosis was correct. It occurred at a time when we were unable to get in touch with our regular vet and had to rely on a family member’s referral. It was not a vet we were completely comfortable with but we really did not have a choice but to go on her advice. After the whole ordeal was over and Baby Benny was safe at home with brother Henry again we were able to see our regular veterinarian and she told us that it may have been Pancretitis but we could not be sure because it was so far after the onset and the first vet had not done a lot of truly necessary lab work to give an accurate diagnosis. However, our favorite vet did recommend that we switch to a special diet for both boys. Our favorite vet, (we’ll call her “Dr. H”) is more of a holistic type of vet and very into using foods and dietary supplements to solve many of today’s medical problems before trying medications that may be unnecessary and cause unwanted side effects. (I don’t know why but I am embarrassed to say that I do this for the dogs but not for myself.) Anyway, Dr. H gave us a list of homemade foods that we could try to keep the boys healthy. She recommended a low fat diet. This was especially important for Benjamin because if the diagnosis of Pancreatitis was correct, then a diet high in fat would cause serious relapses which may include death. We knew there was really no other choice. Of course, Henry would also benefit from the high quality meals. However, it is a lot of work and somewhat expensive. Personally, I justify the cost in what it saves in vet bills and the sheer fact that you cannot put a price tag on good health. Anyway, here is the “secret recipe”:
1½ cups of browned ground turkey (97% fat free)
1 heaping tablespoon of canned pumpkin
1 heaping tablespoon of plain fat free yogurt
1 heaping tablespoon of cooked plain oatmeal
The boys eat 3 meals per day. They have been on this diet for about 2½-3 years (they will be 4 years old in late March and early April). Benjamin weighs in at 20 pounds and Henry is a hearty 23 pounds. They do get the occasional table scrape but it is most often a very healthy choice (i.e carrot stick, bite of banana, Cheerio) unless it is time to clip their nails in which case, all the stops come out and the baggie of Chinese noodles are used for wiggle control. We have often been asked how we keep the boys in such great shape and that is when we discuss their special diet. They also go for at least 2 walks per day for at least ½ mile each walk. It is a big job keeping the gluttons in good condition but that is the job of a dedicated pug mommy. So, this job is done with a smile!
Wednesday, November 16, 2005
Last Sunday, we went to our local dog bakery, Doggie Dayz Bakery. It was our first time there and the bakery was awesome. The bakery was fully stocked with all types of goodies and the thing the boys loved the most was the doggie bar. The doggie bar was normal counter height, but to make it dog accessible there was a set of stairs leading up to it. At the top of the counter were bowls filled with assorted treats. Once at the top of the stairs, the boys could pick any treat they wanted from the bowls. Needless to say, the boys loved being able to help themselves to their very own samples.
The treats are made with all natural ingredients, so they fit into the boys’ diet. We bought a bag full of assorted goodies so the boys could try all the different treats. We are trying to figure out their favorites so we know what to stock up on during our next visit.
Monday, November 14, 2005
One evening last week, when the boys and I returned home from our evening walk, we found this package by our door. The box was business cards that I had ordered earlier in the week, but the UPS man also left two treats for the pugs that always bark whenever he comes near.
Needless, to say the boys were quite surprised to find treats waiting for them at the door. After Ben ate his treat and we went inside the house, he even scratched at the door so that he could go back outside and check for more treats on the porch. Lucky for them, I like to do most of my holiday shopping online, so maybe they will get lucky and get more extra special packages delivered.
« Older Posts
| More Recent Posts »
Want more? Wander through our archives.
