Storybooks and Betrayals

Due to persistent public demand, our resident pet Jappy will blog today. Here is his post:

I love Sunday nights because it's our story time. Yeah, what canine would not enjoy listening to beautifully written prose while propped in a sofa, biscuits refilled every five minutes or so- never mind if some dog I know can not remember these stories. But this Sunday, I was problematic.

First of all, I got to choose the book, and I chose Sophia, The Alchemist Dog, because she reminds me a bit of our friend Lorenza.

But, OHMYDOG ( one paw covering my mouth)!

Someone loved the story so much and digested it as well!

I'm thinking at this point, okay? It could be the Secretary's pup- I've seen his fat little paws destroy every piece of property owned by the Secretary and the Animal Doctor.

Or it could be one of the dogs, I had to ask them..um..what is that word? discreetly.

Jappy: Guys, have you played with a not so ordinary toy lately?
Moy: Huh, my ears are itchy, can't hear ya.
Trudis: What toy?

Perhaps I did not make myself clear.

Moy-Moy, have you been playing with a toy that is not really a toy?

He tried to changed the subject;

While Trudis pretended to be busy chewing her paws.

I really should polish my sleuthing skills, BUT it was too late! The Secretary appeared and saw the dastardly deed committed on her book.

Forget story telling, forget the sofa and the biscuits. All we got last night was a fifteen minute sermon.

I woke up this morning and tinkered with our hidden camera and this is what I found:


Jappy, signing off.

We got an award!

We got a treat when we visited T-man Angel's blog today. T-man came down from Heaven to receive various awards from his friends and he passed one to us.

Thank you, T-man Angel. The Secretary is so thrilled to receive our very first award since we started blogging. We would like to pass this to Sweepy and Aki, our doggy pals in the Philippines.

Sweepy is a Super Dog who barks at humans who are neglectful or cruel to animals. When we wrote about the plight of stray dogs in Barangay Sto. Tomas in Pasig City, Philippines, Sweepy came to the rescue and barked at the barangay captain to desist from capturing stray dogs because we have gathered evidence that they are not equipped to operate an animal pound in their barangay hall.

We presume that the good barangay captain was afraid to earn the wrath of a Super Dog because we have been monitoring Barangay Sto. Tomas and we have not seen any new stray captured since Sweepy's barkings. There are now only two dogs left from the group that we first saw crammed inside the cage in front of the barangay hall. We can only hope that the other dogs were transferred to the City Pound and dealt with in a humane manner. The cage now has a makeshift roof above it and the remaining two dogs have water. Job well done, Sweepy! Dogs like you inspire us to continue working for the upliftment of neglected and suffering animals out there.

Aki, on the other hand, is a new kid on the block, er, blogging world. He and his companions Pooper Scooper and Dr. Heinz never fail to amuse us with their silly antics and hilarious stories . Reading blogs like Aki's is a good way for us to relax and unwind after being distressed by the bad things happening to animals.

See you next time ( and hopefully more awards to pass on).

Doggy Ice Cream

We doggies rarely get our baths because the Secretary is afraid that the water will take our natural oils away. But on Sunday morning, her stink-o-meter cried toot-toot! The Secretary jumped out of bed, rolled her pajamas and took these out:

She said she was going to make some doggy ice cream. What???

My brother Jappy looked like a bowl of whipped cream,

Jappy didn't think it was funny.

But the Secretary was unrelenting. She said my brother Moy-Moy would look delectable with some nuts and cherries atop his famous tail.

Oh-oh. Moy wasn't so thrilled either.

I, Trudis, am the only dog around here who appreciates being bathed. It is so refreshing when cold water hits my skin and I especially love it when the Secretary massages my body with soap and shampoo. I tell her to forgive the two droolfus ( Aki, can I borrow the word?), they don't know a thing about beauty.

Aww, my skin is still red all over.

The Secretary spritzed apple cider vinegar solution on my skin after drying me. Its supawsed to sooth my irritated skin but smells icky. The Secretary told me that in some places here in the Philippines people put vinegar on dogs like me because the cookbook says so. What?, I blinked. What did she mean by that??? The Secretary said shhhh and promised to tell me more when I'm old enough to understand. (She probably did not want to scare me). Okay then, on to happier stuff.

This is our breakfast which was served right after our bath.I used to eat three time a day when I was a wee little pup, but now I have two meals in a day, just like by brothers. The new Assistant prepares our meal. It is made of rice and boiled meat. Sometimes we have boiled eggs and tuna too.

He mixes it in and mixes it up, and mumbles some prayers:

"Bless us O, Lord and these thy gifts
which our beloved pets are about to receive
from thy bounty, through Christ
our Lord, Amen"

Before I proceed, I would like to mention an incredulity here. The pet accessories section of Greenwoods Pet Clinic sells an assortment of bowls which I'm sure the Animal Doctor will sell to me at discounted price. Surely, the Secretary can find one befitting a pretty dog like me.

But no, she is a cheapskate who makes us eat on recycled ice cream containers, buhuhu.
(The Secretary's Note: The resident pets of Greenwoods Pet Clinic are already fortunate enough to have a roof over their head, a bowl of water and two meals in a day. I am saving their money for less fortunate dogs which abound in numbers out there.)

Okay, okay, the three of us barked in unison( besides we are already hungry) while our sister, Pussy meowed her agreement.

After our brekkie, I accompanied the Secretary to bring breakfast to these doggies:

She found this doggy guarding a nearby building. The person who tied him there was not thinking, otherwise he could have left bowl of water for this dog to drink!

"Grrr-yum..yum..Grrrr, " said the doggy.
He didnt like us, but he loved the food. I told him not to talk with his mouth full.

This is my friend, Iyoy. She is well known stray dog in our subdivision. Every morning, she knocks on our still closed clinic for her ration of dog food.

Its usually best to cap this flurry of activities with an afternoon siesta.

Update on Scarlet

Post-operative treatment: day 2

So far, no signs of the much dreaded post op complications. Scarlet ate for the first time since her surgery on Monday, although her usual appetite has yet to kick in. And guess what, she made semi-formed poopies!

Post-operative treatment: day 3

Today, Scarlet had a hearty appetite even on a bland diet. She drank lots of water and made a bowel movement once. We are constantly changing her position to prevent "bed sores"

Cross our fingers and paws that Scarlet will fully recover from her surgery because we still have a lot of work to do to get her hind legs moving again.

Poodle Style Rock- A-Bye Baby

What is wrong with puppy Scarlet?

" I want to run, I want to go chase my ball-ball, but I can't"(Sniffles)

"I got an ouchie," ( More sniffles)

Scarlet, the labrador puppy ( who could be Koy-Koy's girlfriend) tearfully complained to the Animal Doctor when she was brought by her mom and dad to Greenwoods Pet Clinic. A month before that, Scarlet's toe was caught in the slats of her cage which caused her to go limping. Scarlet was not seen by a veterinarian until she lost control of her two hind legs and her muscles shrunk. Poor Scarlet could not do anything but lie on her tummy. She also started having fewer and fewer bowel movements until she had none at all and her tummy became so distended.

The Animal Doctor ordered an abdominal x-ray but he did not see any foreign object that might have caused a blockage and prevented the passage of stool. He also performed a lavage on the colon but no stool came out. Next, he ordered for Scarlet's CBC (complete blood count) and platelet count and check for the pup's liver and kidney function too, but results came back normal.


We waited and waited for Scarlet to make a bowel movement. Even the Animal Doctor was seeing a pile of golden poop in his dreams at night. He decided he will worry about the puppy's paralysis later because he was far more concerned that Scarlet may die from the toxins her body is unable t0 excrete.

The week ended without Scarlet making a bowel movement; the Animal Doctor needed to open Scarlet's tummy. The additional bad news, however, was that Scarlet's parents could not spend for her operation and they opted to just bring her home.

The Animal Doctor felt so sorry for Scarlet. When her parents were about to sign the waiver (to the discharge of patient against the veterinarian's recommendation) the Animal Doctor decided to perform the surgery even if Scarlet's parents did not pay him. The Secretary thought he had gone crazy and boy, was she totally pleased about it.

So last night, after nearly two weeks without any bowel movement and against Sweepy's advice ( because it was on a full moon) Scarlet underwent exploratory laparotomy.

Scarlet still feeling woozy after surgery

Like the xray suggested, the Animal Doctor did not find any foreign object or tumor inside Scarlet's tummy. He did, however, find Scarlet's colon filled with feces and took a plateful out!

Having done with surgery, the Animal Doctor is convinced that Scarlet's lack of bowel movement is due to a loss of neuro-muscular reflex in her colon that could be associated with the paralysis of her hind legs.

This morning, Scarlet defecated on her own, but it remains to be seen if this apparent improvement will continue in the days to come and we will no longer have to worry about Scarlet dying from toxemia.

But we have not solved the mystery of Scarlet's paralysis. It will take more confirmatory test before the Animal Doctor could determine its cause and make a prognosis.

In the meantine, the Secretary is wracking her brains how to make a home made wheely.

Secretary's Note: Scarlet's surgery (estimated at PhP 8,000)was made possible through our Indigent Animal Patient's Fund to which my dear friend Noreen and husband Lito have made a substantial donation this year. Thank you so much Nors and Tolitz, from the bottom of my heart!

Separation Anxiety

Dog products in my wishlist

My brother Moy-Moy is guarding the Garbage Bin( he thinks some kitty is going to steal our property) so I, Trudis will be reporting for blogging duty today.

You've read in one of our old posts that I, Trudis and my siblings had a rough beginning before we were rescued and brought here in Manila. Our poor mother who did not have a home and a family of her own, gave birth right on a cold, wet earth in the vacant lot where the Secretary found us. We were shivering and our tummies grumbling because our mother's milk was not enough for all seven of us. No wonder we had all sorts of problems a growing dog could have: dry and sparse coat, itchy skin, worms, fleas, - of course I'm not including my tongue, the Animal Doctor thinks its part of my charm.

Since the Secretary said we can already make our Christmas wish list this early, I am including stuff that will help solve my problems and will turn me from an ugly duckling to a beautiful swan!(at least this is what I heard from the Secretary)

1.Fish oils- This will make my mouth smell like that our cat Pussy( ewww!), but the omega 3 fatty acids found in this type of oil is said to reduce inflammation all through out the body and improve skin and coat condition.

2. Apple Cider Vinegar- The Secretary has used this in her dogs as an after bath spray ( diluted with water) on the skin to sooth irritations.

2. My very own dog shampoo, conditioners and the whole works- Can you believe it? Greenwoods Pet Clinic is scrimping on me and uses left over shampoos and conditioners from their grooming shop (since these are whole sale dog products go figure the cost of my beauty regimen! ). I want products that should work on my itchy and dry skin. I may only be mongrel but I'm on my way to becoming a pretty mongrel.

3. New brushes, combs and towels- Yeah, throw in some while you're at it.

4. My very own sofa bed- With the above, all I need to do is load up on vitamin zzzzz.

How I Keep My Teefies Clean

Hiya guys! I feel like blogging today on account of my Cebuana fan, (Aki, can you be my girlfriend?) who dropped a message in our Cbox. She is asking about the oral care products I use. Umm.. err.. Aki, will you not want to kiss me anymore if I tell you that I don't brush my teefies?

My Uncle Dexter is 9 years old and lives with the Secretary's family in Iloilo City.

I don't get that yellow stuff sticking in my uncle Dexter's teefies because I am just a young dog maybe?

So the Animal Doctor tells me to munch on Iam's Small Biscuits. The package promises that the biscuits will "help clean" my teefies and "freshen my breath". These bone shaped goodies sure keep me from getting bored but I have no way of sniffing my own mouth.

These pretend bones are made of rawhide and are edible. Constant chewing and gnawing is supposed to scrape the yellow thingamajig off the teeth but the Animal Doctor warns hoomans: there is a danger of your pets choking from these rawhides! If you must give these to your pets, be sure that you are familiar with their chewing habits, alway supervise them and be sure to throw away the bone when only a small part remains for your dog to chew.

Right now, the Secretary is using C.E.T Enzymatic Toothpaste for her senior dogs in Iloilo City. ( I told you the oldies are the ones with the bad teefies). Everynight, the dogs' nanny would brush their teefies with it. So far, so good. I mean, the yellow thingamajigs are fading a bit, but not completely gone. The Secretary is not ecstatic, but given the alternatives out there in the market ( the colored rawhides caused Deedee's liver enzymes to shoot up while real bones give the oldies tummy upset) she'd rather stick with the doggy toothpaste.


This is from the Secretary's wish list:

Petzlife Oral Care Spray and Petzlife Oral Care Gel

Has any dog or kitty used this? The Secretary is not sure if Petzlife is available for sale in my country. The nearest shop to buy it from is in a place called Singapaw or Hongkong.

Aki, maybe you asked about my teefies not because you were interested for Moy-Moy's kisses, but because you worry about your own dog's teefies maybe? The Animal Doctor says you are right in being worried! The yellow thingamajigs are full of bad stuff that can make your doggy sick. But I still want you to be my girlfriend, Sweepy has a hooman girlfriend, alrighty?

( the Animal Doctor's note: the dental plaque has gram positive bacteria that may enter through the lesions in the gums and damaged the heart and kidneys).