Babysitting

This is Jao. My brothers and sisters babysat for him some weeks ago because his dog house was being renovated.

Of course, there was the usual introduction...

But it wasn't long before Jao made himself at home. I watched from our kitchen door while he played- quite wildly- with my siblings.

My brother Moymoy showed him his signature move.

Jao: Dog, don't you get dizzy running after your tail like that??

While my sister Pussy wowed our guest with her musical ability using only a piece of wood.

Today, I was surprised when I saw Moy enter the kitchen with an envelope in his mouth. What is that, Moy? I asked because the Nanny had just given me a boxful of paper to shred. Moy laughed and told me that inside the envelope is the money they earned babysitting Jao. They wanted to donate it for my wheelchair.

I was teary eyed especially when I read their dedication, because I realized that my brothers and sisters love me after all.

We received three more donations this weekend, from a lady named Pam in the US and from two ladies in Mandaluyong ( Did you tell them about me, Charlie?). YAY!
(Secretary's note:As of this posting, Scarlet has accumulated a net of $1041.06 as her Wheelchair Fund, including the 500$ pledge from LLL. This means that she is $158.94 away from fulfilling her Wheely Dream! With the funding for the wheelchair almost secured, the one last thing we have to worry about is the shipping charges because we know it will cost an arm and leg. But like we always say, when there's "wheel", there's a way!)

Full of Thanks

Last night, my Mom/Secretary took my measurements which she'll submit to Eddie's Wheels, the people who will be making my wheelchair in the US. She gathered her measuring tape, yardstick, home made caliper, visual guides for measuring, and called three(!) hoomans to assist her.

It needed three pairs of hands to hoist me up in a standing position, where I will be measured. I was embarrassed when the hoomans told Mom to hurry up because I was kinda heavy.

Mom had to double and triple check my measurements. There are parts of the wheels which are non adjustable. It would be difficult, next to impossible, to send the wheelchair back to the US if it does not fit me.

Mom thought the visual guide looked very easy to follow.

photo taken from the website of Eddie's Wheels

But not so if your legs look as bad as mine. Mom will have to ask Eddie's how to take measurements if my legs permanently splayed like this.

On top of it, I could not keep still. I am too excited.

We don't have a Thanksgiving Day in the Philippines, but I want to celebrate anyway because my heart is overflowing with thanks. Donations to my wheelchair are trickling in day by day, most of these came from people who did not even know me until they read my story in the blogs of my DWB friends.

I am thankful to these kind strangers-now my friends, and to my dog and kitty pals, to Labrador Life Line organization, Eddie's Wheels- to ALL OF YOU - who believed that my Wheely Dreams could come true.

Our friend Lorenza in Mexico celebrated Thanksgiving by remembering the day she was adopted. I thought it was a very nice idea so I gathered all my doggy siblings so we could silently commemorate our own adoption and be thankful about it.


We have come along way since our long faces.

( from left to right: Trudis, Bambi, me Scarlet, Woody, Moymoy and Jappy)

Something to smile about

I have another reason to smile these days. The Secretary~ Mom told me how our friends like Teddy and his Mom, Aki, Poopie and their Manang are going out of their way to help us with the fund raising campaign for my wheelchair. We also like to thank the following for their donation and/ or words of encouragement:

Evie
Jeff Sullivan
Lorenza
Ariel
Jasper and Ruth
Mango the Maltese Kiddo
Charlie the Japanese Spitz
Life With Dogs
Scout and Freyja
Sundae over at the Pampered Pets
Isis
Houndstooth
Rigel
Suzuki
Oz Girl
Sisa
Fudge, Princess and the Piappies

If I forgot anyone, please forgive me. I just want to let you know how I appreciate all your help.

P.S Mom made a christmas wish too: to have our kitchen floor tiled. The Animal Doctor gave it ahead of time. See how the color matches my fur? The surface is smoother and cleaner and more comfortable for my tummy. But then I'll be having my dream wheels soon. :)

YAY! I've been approved!

As most of you know, I applied for financial assistance so I could purchase a full quad cart in the US. I stopped using my homemade wheelchair because it gave me lots of pain and discomfort. My Mom( who knows nothing about bolts and screws) is now afraid to experiment with other designs in the internet, fearing it might do more harm than good.

Because of our location, and the state of the 'conomy these days, I knew we were shooting for the moon when we sent our application to several non profit organizations in the US. It came as a surprise when a very kind lady volunteer from the Labrador Life Line(LLL) emailed to tell us that she'd present my case to their Board. Mom and the Kind Lady exchanged several emails after that. It seems that my case posed several challenges because of my location and LLL's policies. Some people would have already given up, but Kind Lady did not give up on me. And now, I can't wait to tell you the good news: Our application has been approved! Wohooo!

LLL will give me financial assistance of up to US$500.00. This means that I am already halfway to reaching my dreams because my full quad cart could cost between US$ 800-1,300. From my end, I will need to raise $800 and a little more to cover the cost of shipping.

I would like to thank all my friends who have responded since we started posting about my dream wheelchair. Someone already gave us a generous donation , while others helped by way of encouragement or by blogging about my fund raising campaign. Another kind lady from the Westie Rescue of Orange County and Beyond wanted to donate a set of brand new wheels to me(only that it was a two wheeled cart). I think she learned about me through my other friends' blog or facebook.

I will continue to pray and cross my paws that I will be able to raise enough funds for my wheelchair. Til my next update :)

~ Scarlet

Please help our Little Scarlet get a wheelchair

If there's "wheel", there's a way!


I am very lucky to have been adopted in spite of my handicap. My Mom( the Secretary) does everything in her power to make my life as comfortable as possible. But in her heart, she knows how crushed I must feel in not being able to do what I was born to do~ to run and play.

One day, my Mom decided that she will not let my invisible chain pin me down on the floor for the rest of my life. She is going to help me get a wheel chair.

A company in the United States can custom build a full quad cart for me at around US$1,300 excluding shipping cost.

I have applied with a non profit organization but only for a maximum funding of US$500( if I get lucky) so I still need to raise US$800 or more. Our new friend Scout and Freyja suggested that we put up a PayPal donation button for our friends, acquaintances and even strangers who might want to help make my dreams of a wheelchair come true.

Because we have been taught to not only take, the Animal Doctor will match donations over $50 with veterinary services in the donor's name for the benefit of less fortunate dogs and cats in our community in the Philippines. I will be sharing your kindness and generosity to these dogs as well.

Thank you so much in advance. The Secretary-er-Mom ( I am still getting use to the idea) promised to devote our blog for my fund raising project until we have gathered the required funds for the wheelchair. So please, do come back for an update.

More about my Wheely Dream

Good-bye, Hana

Our eskie friend, Hana has passed away unexpectedly due to an aggressive form of cancer. We are still in disbelief. We may not be the bestest of friends, but Hana always made sure to visit our blog whenever she can and leave comments that are sure to brighten up our day.

Her passing touches an emotional cord in all of us who love animals. It reminds us how fragile this earthly bond we have...for all its wonder and beauty we forget that it can be broken.

As a tribute to Hana, I will spend a quite night with my dogs tonight and give each of them an extra hug.

Moy's Product Review: Petzlife Oral Care Gel

Hiya guys! Surprise??? Yes, its moi, Moymoy. I must have left thousands of readers broken hearted after my popular Mondays Are For Moymoy series fizzled out. Please forgive me. I got stuck in the biggest writer's block ever, and out of shame I decided to shift career. Patrolling is a pretty exciting job and I get to practice my primitive canine skills, but I do miss blogging at times.

So despite many raised brows here in our pet clinic, I am presenting to you Moy's Product Review series. But no commitments, okay? I'm not paid any biscuits for my intelligent commentaries, but I will try my best to post as often as I could. I intend to help hoomans in constant search for the best products for their pets.

The first product in my list is Petzlife Oral Care Gel.

The Secretary had Petzlife in her wish list after seeing it in the internet. Dissatisfied with pet toothpaste and dental chews, the Secretary was searching for the ultimate tartar remover for her senior dogs in Iloilo City.

Its very rare to find Petzlife in local petshops and vet offices in the Philippines. The Secretary got her first bottle from Singapaw. 4 oz cost about P3,500 including shipping charges. Our eskie friend Casper commented that he became lethargic after using it, so the Secretary made sure to observe her dogs' reaction to the product. Because of positive results, she ordered several bottles from the United States ( $29/bottle). Thanks to our Tita Noreen in California for shipping these to the Philippines.

Petzlife comes in either gel or spray. The Secretary got the gel variant in salmon flavor. The appropriate amount is placed in her dogs' mouth twice daily for the first month, without food or water intake thirty minutes before and after every application. Brushing is not required but could hasten the removal of softened tartar.

I carefully scrutinized the before and after pictures taken of Jenilyn, the Secretary's adopted poodle in Iloilo City. Jen is approximately four years old, thrives exclusively on home cooked meals, and does not have any significant chewing activity outside of mealtimes.

BEFORE

45 DAYS AFTER

Based on the facts I gathered, this is my over all verdict:

Cost 3 out of 5 bones
Effectivity 5 out of 5 bones
Ease of Application 5 out of 5 bones

Something fishy at Greenwoods Pet Clinic

Someone gave up these gold fishes for adoption. I didnt want any more responsibility, not after Pusit got pregnant and brought in three more kittens before she could be spayed. But the Animal Doctor made room for another rescue at the pet clinic.

Many dogs and cats forget their fear of needles while staring at the fishes.

"You should taste the water in here, its absolutely divine", Pusit tells Isay, our assistant vet's cat.