puppy names

[shelbers]

The puppy doesn't know it yet but he and I are going to be best friends. :dogsmile: I agree that they should suggest it to families. Dogs are the best! All of the dogs I've had throughout my life have really been apart of the family. They make the best companions.

Im sure my dog will think I'm crazy, I know I'll be giving him all sorts of nicknames that are goofy.

 

[tigerlily46514]

I THINK LOKI IS GONNA BE ONE LUCKY LIL PUPPY, i can tell already!! So are YOU!!

DOGS ARE THE BEST THERAPY, i swear they are...our lives are so much better
since we got our Buddy, we get more excercise, we are outdoors more, we laff way way more, we bond up over our shared mutual obsession with making Buddy stay busy and have fun. I've met neighbors i somehow never met before, everyone in our hood knows Buddy now. Buddy just cracks us up every single day. What a piece of sunshine running through our lives...

There's a movie coming out, "Year of The Dog"...can't wait to see it. Apparently, from the trailer, is about the power of what we have to learn, to be able to help our dog be happy and balanced. (not sure, just a guess from the short clip i saw)

I think this movie may hit home with us, we live in Elkhart Indiana, that town that President Obama keeps visiting cuz our town it is the worst economy in the entire country...we drive down the streets past now empty buildings where there used to be a cafe, a factory that will never be back, a shoppe your friend used to run....Everyone we know is struggling, losing their homes...everyone has lost their jobs, including my man. Took the air outa him-- is why i got him a dog. I tell ya, we rescued Buddy, and then he rescued us right back.

i bet you are gonna be a great dog guardian, and i just know this lil bundle of love and joy will help you stay busy and happy til hubby gets back.

 

[shelbers]

I heard somewhere that people with dogs have less stress and are happier.


Buddy is very lucky to have you. :dogbiggrin: Its so great that he has been able to rescue you!

 

[jazzycat]

I think pets in general help people have less stress and create happiness. Even watching fish swim has proven to relieve stress.

About dogs and the military, while I agree it can be a good idea, I live near a couple of bases, and you wouldn't believe how many dogs and cats get dumped every year by people in the military. I got my husky because a military guy took her to the local shelter. They were closing and told him he would have to come back the next day, so he threatened to just dump her. The people at the shelter told him they would call the police on him if he did that (they had his tag number on his car), so he brought her back the next day. I don't think they will adopt out to military anymore because of the dumping, it is such a problem here. So, there definitely needs to be some education there. Of course I realize all military people aren't like that. Still, it is a big problem with that segment of the population here.

 

[tigerlily46514]

OH, i hadn't thought about that, wow, sad, didn't know that...i can see now, how that could happen...
Sometimes, i think, (i'm gonna get SLAMMED for saying this) but sometimes, some younger folks, busy, broke, babies and children to tend to--lil kids and babies are always getting sick til they are about 5 years old, this, of course, freaks out their young loving parents!! Someitmes lousier jobs, college + homework, big plans, big stressors, so exhausted they are living on fumes of sleep only, they might have more busy lives, more pressing responsibilities, than any other age group, sometimes i think this could, IN SOME CASES, make a young family sometimes, less likely to focus on their dog--as they often have SO MUCH ELSE going on in their lives IN SOME CASES.

NOT TO SAY, THAT THE ABOVE DESCRIBED YOUNG FAM could not, indeed, love and prioritize their dog's happiness as well as anyone else, and need that dog and love that dog, and would not DREAM of losing that dog, and to them, that dog is part of the fam, cuz i am well aware of many young struggling fams that do!! don't kill me...

In all truth, when i was busy raising my kids, i recall being exhausted pretty often, and i ws so lucky to strong as an ox, skinny, but fit and durable, but still, even i often yearned for SLEEP!! And a dog might have seemed, BACK THEN in my struggling years, as one more thing to take care of. Not sure, didn't have one back then. But i can imagine it was not impossible to think that way, when one is young, super busy, moving all the time, often forced into housing with no dog rules, lotta balls all up in the air at the same time and not as much practice managing all that.

now don't hit me for more than 5 minutes. i'm just thinking how it could be for SOME young, stressed out familys. BUT STILL IT IS SAD...so sad...isn't the poor dog's fault.

 

[shelbers]

I've never herd of military dumping pets! That's sooooooooo wrong!!! :msnmad: And I'm sure if their command knew that they were doing that they'd get into a lot of trouble. People like that make me very angry. I could go on forever about this, but I'm just not going to waste my time on idiots.
:msnmad::msnmad::msnmad:

 

[jazzycat]

Army town struggles to save pets abandoned by troops
HINESVILLE, Ga. (AP) - The 32 dogs look up with sad eyes or wag their tails as animal control officer Linda Cordry walks the row of chain-link cages toward a door concealing a gas chamber. "These guys are mine," Cordry says with weary resignation. "These are basically on Death Row."

Liberty County Animal Control and the humane shelter that shares its small cinderblock building have been crammed to capacity with dogs and cats since Army troops from neighboring Fort Stewart deployed to Iraq. Both agencies say it's no coincidence.

"I would say 95 percent of these animals come from military homes," says Beate Hall, who runs the humane shelter where dozens of soldiers and Army spouses began dumping pets during the holidays.

The wars in Iraq and Afghanistan have prompted national efforts to alert deploying soldiers to alternatives to abandoning animals when they leave for war. But the hundreds of unwanted pets turning up in this southeast Georgia military town indicate many aren't getting the message.

" "Army Town Struggles to Save Abandoned Pets" - Democratic Underground
USATODAY.com - Army town struggles to save pets abandoned by troops

(Liberty County and Fort Stewart are near here, and Hunter Army base IS here in town. The shelter in Liberty County puts so many animals to sleep it is horrifying. At least here, the shelter tries to save them. Animal Control, however, puts them to sleep after a few days.)

Soldiers' Pets Need Foster Homes
Volunteer Families Care for Military Pets While Troops are Deployed

Military men and women deploying overseas have few options for the care of their pets. Soldiers, often called up on a moment’s notice, face the only alternatives of surrendering pets to a new home, dumping them in a shelter, or simply abandoning them. Pets are part of the family and while help is available for soldiers’ families, there is often no one to care for the pets.

Even when friends or relatives are willing to help with the soldier’s dog or cat, problems can arise if the new animal has conflicts with existing pets, family members, or housing arrangements. Overwhelmed shelters are filling with military pets and sometimes their only option is, sadly, to reject the pet or put it to sleep. Indeed, innocent animals are paying a price for our country’s conflicts...

Read more: Soldiers' Pets Need Foster Homes: Volunteer Families Care for Military Pets While Troops are Deployed | Suite101.com

 

[tx_cowgirl]

WOW. After reading this post, I can just feel my chest swelling. ^^ Lol. Not to toot my own horn, but I recently ran into a military wife with a Dalmatian. It was her hubby's dog, 5 years old, and he'd been in 3 different homes. Her hubby was getting shipped off for the third time, and the Dallie was more than she could handle. Neither of them had ever had Dalmatians before, and really had NO clue what they had gotten into. The wife physically couldn't walk the dog because he drug her. He was an escape artist, a home redecorator, a garbage man, a beaver-wannabe...you name it, this dog did it. He was the classic backyard ornament who didn't get enough exercise. As a former Dallie owner and current Dallie lover, I gave her LOOOOTS of info on the breed and what she was going to have to do to start helping his problems: EXERCISE. She didn't have the dog with her at the time, so I couldn't exactly SHOW her how to leash-train him. Plus, she was at her wit's end anyway and she would've gotten frustrated and impatient very quickly.

I recommended a Gentle Leader, explained thoroughly how to use it, and instructed her to read the manual and watch the video. I then gave her my contact information if she needed any help or had any questions. THAT NIGHT, I got a call from her telling me that the two of them made it around the block for the first time EVER, without him getting away from her or her getting frustrated and worn out. She said she remembered why she loved the dog, and was so excited with his progress just in one night that she couldn't wait to see what he could become with time and patience. She said he was happily snoozing at her feet, INSIDE, with no incidents. He was worn out and she was hopeful that her hopeless dog was already making progress. She was so sweet I actually got choked up listening to her. Made my day!!!! She had been tossing around the idea of finding him another home because she said she "just couldn't handle him anymore." She's kept me posted thusfar on him, and his behavior problems are no more just with the exercise change alone. She's walking him daily now. A definite win-win for both dog and owner. -sniffle-

 

[tigerlily46514]

WAY TO GO TX!!! Aww, that about chokes me up, too!! WONDERFUL!!! REally inspiring, cool post!! Thanks!!

SCORE!!!

 

[shelbers]

YAY tx for saving that dog! :msnohyes:

I just wish there was more the military could do to help. Reading about all those guys just dumping their dogs breaks my heart. On the other hand though, they KNOW that they can be deployed at ANY time. Its sooo irresponsible for them to get dogs without having a plan for when they deploy. I personally think that the military should offer these guys more education on what they're doing to these poor dogs... and possibly help these guys rehome their dogs...

I know the Marine Corps is working on this great program. They are using the prisoners in the lower security of the brig to train service dogs to help out the guys who were wounded in the war. I'm not sure where they get the dogs from... I'll have to ask my brother (hes a corrections officer in the Marine Corps). It'd be nice if they were rescuing the dogs. :dogsmile:

 

[tx_cowgirl]

Most prison training programs use shelter dogs.

 

[jazzycat]

tx_cowgirl, kudos for helping that woman with her dog! YEA!

The last link I posted is about a program designed to help military put their pets in foster homes until they get back. That way they can keep them. It's really just a sad state of affairs.

 

[kossack]

that's really tragic. i was just reading about a woman who had health problems and had to "donate" her cats/dogs to a shelter bc there was no fostering alternative.