Can We Make it a Year Between 'Opthamologist' Appointments?

Stolen from Dingle's website (www.freewebs.com/michelle_and_dinglehopper) and originally written on December 3rd:

"At our last (eye) vet appointment in May I was told that Dingle didn't need to come back for another check-up until around Christmas, unless we had problems. Luckily (and surprisingly) Dinglehopper has not had problems. The other day I decided I should call the vet and check in to see if he needed an appointment this soon. Again, luckily and surprisingly Dinglehopper has been doing awesome, eye wise. We recently switched back to Cyclosporin gel (instead of the drops we had tried when we filled the last prescription) and his eyes look amazing - no tear stains at all. No squinting, rubbing at eyes, etc.

Before I called the vet I literally had to sit there for 10 minutes trying to remember the vet's name... yes, I couldn't remember because it had been so long. We've never made it 7 months without seeing a specific vet. At first I thought "ah ha, it's Dr. Miller", but then realized no, that was the name of his knee surgeon. I finally figured it out and when I called I was told that Dingle didn't need to see him until May unless there were problems.

So, as long as nothing comes up between now and then, Dingle will only have to have yearly visits, just to renew his prescription.

I'm glad we don't have to go now, because it would be a waste of money, but at the same time I'd like to know if they could tell if there has been a vision decrease between now and last year - since it has been just over a year since Dingle's KSC/PRA diagnoses.

Well, I guess I'll just continue to hope for the best (read: be in denial over his failing eyesight) until May."

In other random news - last week a small town newspaper published an article that I wrote about why you shouldn't purchase a puppy as a Christmas gift. It talked about pet stores, puppy mills, backyard breeders (hello Kijiji), holiday dangers, etc. I also submitted an article to the Toronto Star, but never heard back from them. I sent it off to the Metro Newspapers as well, but I think it's futile. At least word got out in the rural area, which is big on puppy mills.

Meet Moo-Cow Dingle:

Another Ear Infection

Dingle has another ear infection. He just had one on September 8th. I only remember the date because we had to make a vet trip on his birthday.

Last night we made a trip to the vet again. I had spoken to the vet on the phone earlier in the day and he said to go ahead and treat with Surolan. However he wanted me to come in and have an ear cleaning demo and to get solution to clean his infected ear with.

The appointment was with a technician only - the vet wanted to spare me the appointment fees since I know what an ear infection looks like and already have the medication. So we were with the technician for about 10 minutes for this demo. I've been cleaning his ears correctly... just needed to buy the solution... don't remeber the name off hand. I was impressed because that trip only cost me $45... and that was with a bag of dental food.

Speaking of dental - Dingle's breath smells like he has a carcas lodged in his throat...again. I guess we only got a few weeks of stink free following the dental.

Dingle's recent dental, ear infection, potential new ear infection, etc.

Hm... so I'm at work... and decided to update Dingle's blog. Why is it that I only seem to do this while at work. Literally... 100% of posts were done while here.

I think Dingle may be getting another ear infection. I woke up to him with his foot stuffed in his ear. He dug around good and then stuck it in his mouth and licked/chewed it for a while.

Of course I made the dumb mistake of clipping Dingle's nails today. And by *I* I mean my boyfriend... I can't clip Dingle's nails. They are too dark and the vets told me his quick is quite high. So I generally have the vet clip his nails, but today my boyfriend did it. Clipped nails means sharp nails. Sharp nails and Dingle's obsessive itching makes me think I'll come home to a bloody, scabby ear.

If he's still scratching tomorrow on goes the e-collar... like last ear infection... 3-4 weeks ago:

Dingle had a dental 2 weeks ago. $450 and he has clean teeth. Dingle acted very unhappy for over 24 hours. He just moped around and I was worried... mainly because I was going out of town 2 days after his dental and worried about leaving him. The "what if he needs to go to the vet and I'm not here" was going through my head as was the "My boyfriend won't be able to reach me 24/7... what if..." He was fine, though. I let him eat wet food for the first day... cause I figured his teeth and gums would be sore.

Long haired dog + being groggy from anesthesia + wet food = this:

His breath is starting to smell again. $450 bought me 2 weeks of roadkill smell-free breath.

I brush his teeth, he has dental food, dental toys, yada, yada, yet it seems like every year I'm going to have to pay to have his teeth cleaned. Ugh... it's one of the few things Vet Insurance doesn't cover. Which I guess I should be happy about... not that they don't cover dentals, but because he has had so many health issues (again, not happy about that) and they have all been covered for the most part. I think everyone should get pet insurance... especially if you have a pet store dog... but you shouldn't have one from a store... don't make the mistake I did.

Speaking of which I was on Kijiji tonight and browsing ads when I decide to search the name of the store Dingle came from. Bad idea. What comes up but a little 4 month old cream sable pom that someone bought less than a week ago and is already trying to get rid of. Poor pom. Poor any-dog-from-a-pet-store.

I spoke to Dingle's eye vet about a week ago. We did a follow-up phone call (crap, that reminds me I was supposed to give another update this week and haven't yet). We have the go ahead to not come in until just before Christmas, provided there are no problems. It's been a few months since we've had to have a visit there... of course we've been to Dingle's regular vet frequently still.

And that's all I have to say...

Dingle's birthday vet visit, potential heart murmur, camping, etc.

Tuesday was Dingle's birthday. We officially made it to 4 years old. I hope we have at least another 4 more birthdays for him... hopefully the worst health problems are over...

Dingle had a vet visit on his birthday... he got to see his buddies at the Downtown Animal Hospital on his special day. That was probably the highlight of his day (I'm surprised I didn't do presents... but he's got so many treats and toys already it would have been unnecessary)... he loves the staff there.

Dingle had a grooming appointment on Saturday and Monday night he was scratching his ear like crazy. I couldn't keep him away from it. His nails were just cut at the grooming appointment and so they were very sharp. Dingle made his ear bleed... a lot. I figured his ear was probably itchy from an ear infection. We had Surolan at home but I didn't want to just use it without checking with the vet. I thought I'd just end up taking him to the vet for an overall check up because he was supposed to go in for a dental next week and I wanted to ensure he was healthy for the anesthesia.

So we were able to make an appointment for 9pm Tuesday. We went in and the vet looked at his ear, which was full of dried blood... full... it was black everywhere. The vet said that it looked like ear wax build-up and seemed hesitant to believe it was blood. He took multiple q-tips and was just scooping out the dried blood and scabs. Dingle was yelping the whole time and it took me and the vet to try and hold him still. After the vet determined that it was dried blood Dingle shook his head and a big scab came out and hit me in the face. Ew. Dingle, you're lucky I love you... because that was disgusting.

Dingle has an ear infection and I was given the go-ahead to use the Surolan we had. I also asked him to check his temperature and listen to his heart. Temp was normal and the heart was perhaps normal - there's always been some question as to whether Dingle has a heart murmur. Some instances the vets say no, others say maybe grade 1. This appointment he said there may be a murmur, but its only heard when Dingle was spazzing out trying to get back into my arms.

After the check-up the vet saw my pet insurance form and said there was actually no charge for the appointment - since we were just there Saturday for the grooming and it was likely the grooming caused the infection (maybe water/shampoo got inside). I was thrilled. It was so nice for them to say no charge. The receptionist said it was Dingle's birthday present but then corrected herself and said that's more of a present to me.

Dingle was supposed to have a dental this coming Monday, but we had to push it back a week and a half while we allow his ear to heal.

Dingle had his first 'camping' (in a backyard) experience this past weekend. On Saturday night we went up to a friend's place and stayed in a tent. Did we sleep well? No... and not just because it felt like we were sleeping on rocks, but because Dingle and my boyfriend's 1 dog (we left the other home with a neighbour) would yip, growl and/or bark at every little noise during the night. It was pretty cool at night and so Dingle slept on a folded towel (for padding) wrapped in a fleese blanket. Then we moved him into our sleeping bag (we had 2 zipped together). I wish I got to take a picture of Dingle in front of the tent, but my boyfriend took it down early in the morning before I could.

Not only did Dingle have his first tent experience, but he had his first experience with being an outdoor dog. I don't know how they got me agree to it, but Dingle and my boyfriend's dog stayed chained up in our friend's backyard while we went out for a few hours. Their parents were there checking on him, but I was still so nervous. When we came back Dingle was fast asleep by the deck, in the shade.

A pic from this weekend's camping adventure:

Thank-you Alcon / Dingle Will Be 4 Next Week!

So a while back I wrote to Alcon - a company who makes Tears Natural II eye drops. These are the drops that Dinglehopper is one, 2 times a day (along with prescription drops) to manage his KCS ("dry eye").

I was working my usual overnight shifts and had some spare time on my lunch (read: I was bored) and wanted to contact them to tell them how 1) a *dog* was using their eye drops and 2) we went through many eye drops, both store bought and prescriptions before we found this one which he tolerates well (he had allergies/sensitivies/reactions to many others).

The representative who wrote back was an animal lover and said she'd send some drops to us. I was certainly not expecting that.

We got 4 bottles - which saved me about $50 and should last us... I don't know, a year?

I took this picture to send to Alcon to express my thanks.

Even Dinglehopper looks happy!



Hm... what else is new - well my boyfriend went away to visit family for a few days leaving me with Dingle, his pug/beagle, his pug/bull dog, his iguana, his aquarium, etc. They've been keeping me busy... and boy oh boy does that pug/bulldog crap a lot.

Dingle's having a sleep over at the vet on Friday... he has a grooming appointment Saturday morning and its easiest for me to board him the night before with my work schedule/drop off times.

I need to speak to the vet about Dingle's teeth. I think he needs another dental. He had one a year ago... to the day. His back teeth look like hell... so much plaque, despite dental food, toys, treats, brushing his teeth. Last year they said at his next dental he might need 2 front teeth pulled... but when I asked why (this was almost a week later... he was being boarded while I was in Cuba) I never did get a response... it wasn't the vet who did the procedure though. I hope that's not necessary. I can't remember if last year after the dental his carcass mouth smell was gone or not. Ew, even I admit his breath is gross. But I still kiss him all the time. Mua ha ha. (Can we say Giardia?)

Oh, and Dingle's birthday is next Tuesday. Yay, he will be 4 years old.

Hm... Dinglehopper Ramblings.

Okay, so what to say about Dingle/his life.

Today we got really important paperwork/documents back from CBC, that was lent to them. I'm glad to have that back in my hands. Though now that I think about it I need to go in search of a copy of something else I no longer have.

Ramblings aside Dingle has a random cut (or something) above his left eye. I'm hoping he just scratched himself and it's not the random thought-to-be crotch rot from his chin/mouth. Dingle's nails are quite long so it's possible while scratching he scraped himself. Fingers crossed because I don't want a vet visit anytime soon.

Speaking of vet visits I'm itching to get a check back from Vet Insurance. They denied part of a recent claim because of the way it was invoiced - it looked like preventative care, instead of treatment. Canada Post lost my package of info about 2 months ago so I had to gather all the info again last week and fax it. Thank-you to one of Dinglehopper's vets who wrote a lovely letter explaining that it should have been covered in June, with everything else.

I called Vet Insurance to confirm they received the fax (because I usually hear from them the next day) and they did... I guess it's just taking a while back it is such a complex coverage request... in addition to re-submitting part of June's claim I also tacked on an eye drop claim and something else relating to June. Now I sit and try and wait patiently for my $200.

I was looking at photos of Dingle from when he was a pup and gosh was he ugly when I got him. I did get him during his puppy ugly stage, though, where a lot of his puppy fur had already fallen out, without the adult fur having grown in.

Here's some old Dingle pictures:

One of the first fews days I had Dinglehopper... still have a fair bit of puppy fur.

Losing the puppy fur...

Ah...

In other news Dingle's 4th birthday is September 8th. Yay.

In completely unrelated news I hate formatting these damn entries - it takes like 200 tries to make it look right and sometimes I just give up... like now.

Random Dingle Updates

Hm... what to say. Well, I'm making an honest effort to update this thing... for all of my non-readers.

The other day I took Dinglehopper to a nearby school. The yard is fully fenced and I let him run off-leash. Our neighbours came and so with Dingle and my boyfriend's two dogs there were 8 dogs and then the random few 'strangers and their dogs' that happened to show up. Amongst the dogs were a pug/beagle (bf's dog), pug/bulldog (bf's dog), bulldog, Mastiff, Mastiff mix, other mix (like 120lbs), etc.

Dingle was the smallest dog... by a lot (excluding the bf's dogs). Boy can he keep up with 120+ pound dogs. He has no interest in playing fetch, but he will chase the dogs that are interested in running after the ball. Dingle trails not that far behind (surprisingly) barking his head off.

It was nice to see him running because 1) he barely ever gets off-leash... and 2) it's great that he *can* run... talk about $5,000 (*gag*) well invested for his 3 luxating patella surgeries.

Next time we all go I'm going to try and remember my camera to take a quick video to show how fast my little puffball can run.

In other 'news' - Dingle has adjusted well to the new apartment. Yay. He even ventures off on his own in the evening when it's starting to get dark... when he has very poor vision. I guess he learned the layout quickly. Though I don't leave him outside of the bedroom at night. He goes in the bedroom with the door shut - because our bedroom is right at the top of the stairs. One wrong step and it would not be good, even though I did put a nightlight at the top of the stairs for him.

When we go out Dingle gets 'put in his habitat'... we blocked off my work area for him to stay in. Why? Well the bf's pug/bulldog likes to wreck shit. He's eaten 3 Blackberry cell phones (F.M.L) ... I'm talking jumps onto the counter height table to take them. So to avoid my house and posessions from being destroyed I stuck up a deal - the bf shuts his dog in his den and Dingle goes in his own area. Problem solved, hopefully.

I Think We've Got The Answer!

I think I've got the answer...

Someone I know (who is also a Vet Tech.) saw the pictures I posted and said it looked like a bacterial or fungal infection. (Thank-you for this info!)

So I did a search online and one of the possible infections dogs are prone to are caused by yeast.

Yeast is common in dogs' ears.

Hm.

Dingle had been licking my boyfriend's dogs ears constantly - more so than normal.

We look in the dogs ear and voila - it's red and irritated.

Give it a smell and it stinks... similar to bread.

Boom, we assume the dog has a yeast overgrowth in his ears. He has floppy ears and in the summer floppy eared dogs can have ear problems.

Luckily we had Surolan at home - Dingle has had an ear infection in the past and so has my other boyfriend's dog (who also has floppy ears).

I assumed Dingle's 'beak' (as my boyfriend calls it) was irritated from the yeast.

Yes, we believe my dog has/had "crotch rot" on his face.

Did I rush Dingle off to the vet? No. I decided to try a natural remedy, as his muzzle was already looking significantly better than before. That and Dingle has been on so many meds in his 3, almost 4, years and I wanted to spare him any potential side effects... at least for the time being.

After a few days of him eating plain yogurt, a few wipes with apple cider vinegar and water and he looked so much better.

The bf's dog's ear is all better.

I also read that Surolan can be used on skin and yesterday put a teensy bit on the areas he can't lick (don't want Dingle to ingest it).

I'm hoping we spared Dingle a trip to the vet. Though he loves going, I don't...

And time for a Dingle picture...

Dingle in the bath along with his 'brothers'... the pug/bulldog mix and the pug/beagle mix (the dog who had the ear infection)

Is it a sunburn?

Hm... a coworker wondered if the crap on Dingle's face may have been a sunburn.

We were just on vacation a few days before the scabbyness/grossness.

We weren't outside for hours on end, because the weather was terrible, but he was definitely outside more than we are here in Toronto.

This sounds like it could apply to Dingle: http://www.dogtopics.com/89/the-facts-about-dog-sunburn/#more-89

He has light coloured hair... little hair on his mouth area... it was around his mouth and is now on his nose (came home from work yesterday and a patch on his nose was pink instead of black)...

Is the mystery solved? Who knows.

If he doesn't look 100% by the early week, I will make a trip to the vet. That will likely be vet trip #1,243 for Dingle.

WTF was wrong with Dingle's face?

Okay, so Dingle's face is better... the scabs or whatever it was came off today... through Dingle licking, scratching and some help from me (just getting it off his wiskers).

Any thoughts about what it was?

My possible ideas...

- From chewing a bone... and sticking his face right inside the (femur) bone... did it get raw?

- Licking excessively and irritating the area?

- From licking my boyfriend's dog's ears... mouth gets chapped from having a soggy floppy ear resting on him all the time?

- Allergic reaction?

- Something nasty that dried to his face and wasn't actually a scab?

- WTF?

He's had little patches before, but nothing like this.

Before it started to come off it just looked slightly 'off' - like a dark circle around his mouth/lips. It wasn't bloody or anything. It didn't appear to bother him... not that he indicated at least. But then again dogs can't talk.

Now that the crap has come off it's pink again... but I can't tell if it's pinker than usual... it doesn't look extremely raw, though.

We came back from my mom's place about 3 days before I noticed his muzzle looking weird. No traces of this up there.






In other Dingle news: We're moving. Yes, doing what the opthamologist did not recommend. We're staying in the same building and have had access to the new place for a few weeks, though we don't officially live int he new place until Saturday. I was slightly worried about changing his environment so I took Dingle to the new place often for him to check it out and familiarize himself with the layout. He went when the apartment was empty and now with about 99% of our stuff in. No problems so far. I think he sees a lot better than suggested by the opthamologist... or that he pretends to. I'm only concerned about the first little while of him sleeping there - at night. He doesn't not see well at all, in the dark/low light. Of course this place has scary steps. Our current place has stairs by they curve half way down and have a bit of a landing. The new apartment is 12 steps, straight down. Our bedroom is directly to the right, at the top. Thank goodness for baby gates and being obsessively supervised.

Wow, I sure can update regularly Dingle had a week away from Toronto

So it's been 2 months since I updated. Not that anyone really reads this anyways, so I guess it's okay.

Dingle and I just got back from some vacation time at my mom's. I was looking forward to Dingle getting to swim at the beach, but the weather was crappy so he never got to the beach.

Dingle did get his very own $12 wading pool though:





He stood in it looking pissed off for a few minutes, then jumped out. I put him in, he jumped out... I put him in, out he goes... this process repeated itself several times...

When not outside Dingle spent a lot of time exploring... and eating the random food pieces that were on the floor near my mom's conure's cage. Dingle hated that damn bird. He didn't mind it last year, or near the beginning of last week - until my sister opened its cage and it decided to fly out and land on Dingle's back. It was all down hill from there.

Dingle barely ate any of his food when we were gone. I think it's because he filled up on other stuff. That and he's not a big eater as it is.

One of the things he enjoyed... his first steak bone:




When I went out to a store briefly Dinglehopper did not have to go in his 'camper' (fold up canvas cage thing).

What did he do while I was gone?



He waited for his mommy.

We're back in Toronto now and Dingle is no longer the only dog in the household.

Dingle did not use a pee pad while at my mom's house. I thought "yay maybe he won't ever have an accident in the house again, therefore avoiding the need to put a pad down", but no... he's regressed again. He's like an 8 week old pup sometimes in that department... probably relates back to his puppy mill beginning somehow.

Something weird I also noticed is that Dingle has a disgusting rash/scab/scaly thing all over his muzzle. It's really nasty. He had it a bit before we went away, but it cleared up completely while we were gone. Now it's back. I don't know what's causing it.

While away he used a glass water bowl. Here he has stainless steel.

While away he didn't chew bones. He did since we've been back.

While away he didn't have another dog nearby... with floppy ears that Dingle feels the need to lick the insides of, 24/7.

My other guesses as to what it might be caused from: Dingle's obsessive licking (of other people, himself, etc), dirty Toronto.

Right now the scab/scaly grossness is peeling off. I might see if I can get a picture of it. I don't know what it is, but it doesn't appear to bother him... so I'm just watching it and not taking him to the vet. I always rush to the vet... not this time.

Speaking of which I'm waiting for another reimbursement cheque from Vet Insurance.

$20,000 lifetime coverage... Dingle's not even 4 and has probably used half of that already.

If you or anyone you know chooses Vet Insurance for their pet, say that Dinglehopper's owner referred you - they currently have a promotion which gives us 1 month free for referrals.

I love Vet Insurance - they are so fast at reimbursing you... their plan is easy to understand... they never decrease your coverage/penalize you for making claims... I definitely recommend it. I spent a lot of time looking at the available programs/companies when I first got Dingle and I do not regret my decision to choose Vet Insurance.

Want to See Dinglehopper in metallic, chromogenic form?

If so, go to this:




The write-up from the EMail sent to me:

Hiep Vu Photography would like to invite you to a show of work that is running alongside the Contact Festival of Photography in Toronto.

"Meet the Barkers - Portraits of a Canine Clan" is a set of 11 metallic, chromogenic prints that seek to make a connection between the dog world and our own. These photos, completed in a hyper-real portrait style, bring the details of our dog companions into a surreal and beautiful light. The show runs at Crema Coffee Company (3079 Dunda St. West - West of Keele) from May 8th to June 30th and will be having an opening reception on Thursday May 14th from 7-10pm. Hiep Vu is a commercial photographer based out of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. His clients include RIM, Pfizer, Rogers, and National Sports."

I need a shelter/rescue in the GTA - To donate dog/cat food to

So, I'm hoping to get some feedback. Not sure if I will or not since nobody reads my blog, but anyways...

Lately I've become obsessed with coupons.

Gimme a break. I work overnights. Yes, 99% of my days (and by that I mean nights) are damn busy. But when the nights are slow, it gets boring.

You can only look at Facebook so much and wonder "why is so-and-so not playing their move on Lexulous". Duh, it's 4am and everyone is sleeping, but you... sucker.

When I'm bored I help to pass the time by looking online for samples and coupons.

Now that you have had that bit of background...

Getting to the point: In the last week alone I have gotten a ton of dog food, that I can't use.

The first 3 bags are of Proplan Selects puppy food. PetSmart had a sale on where the puppy food (and apparently all Proplan Selects earlier in the month) was $8.99 for a 5 pound bag. I had 3 coupons for $7.50 off. So for just over $5 including tax I got 3, 5 pound bags of dog food.

Dingle can't eat them, neither can my boyfriends 2 dogs, because they aren't puppies.

Then today/yesterday I've managed to get about 4, 2.5 lb bags (and 1, 3 lb bag) of Royal Canin Yorkie food. For free... again, from coupons. I was told that the 'mixture' or what have you, of the Yorkie formula is very similar to that of the other breeds... and general Royal Canin food. One person said I should feed Dingle it... but I don't think I will.

In less than a week I've accumulated about 25 pounds of dog food (and 4 cans of cat food) for (again) just over $5. I mean it's not necessarily the *best* pet food out there, but it is food nonetheless.

My plan is to keep accumulating for a while (since the food doesn't expire for at least another year) and then donate it. I'm looking for shelter suggestions or rescue suggestions.

I thought about giving it to people hard hit by the recession, or seniors on a tight budget... people who might be having a really hard time providing for their pets. The problem is that I don't want to post this on Craig's List (or anywhere similar) because it would be hard to verify the legitamacy of the *need* and I don't know anyone in my apartment building/neighbourhood that could use it. Therefore I'm looking for a rescue or shelter.

I really want to give it to an organization that needs it - that may not get a lot of other donations. Somewhere that will truly appreciate it. I've donated stuff before to a larger organization and they didn't seem to appreciate it... just got told to toss it "over there" and someone would get to it eventually.

The problem: the place I give it to needs to be downtown, easily accessable by TTC. I don't drive, so I'll be lugging all the crap on the TTC.

Suggestions?

Sleeping in the same bed as a dog that smells like Ketchup is gross.

It seems like I only have time to write in this blog when I'm at work... when it's a quiet night and I have some 'down' time.

What's new in the world of Dingle? He stinks like Ketchup.

I like Ketchup.

I like Pomeranians...

...but together, it's gross.

I came home from work this morning and Dingle decided that he wanted to sleep in the bed.

Usually Dingle wants to sleep anywhere but our bed (or in any of his 4 beds for that matter...)

Dingle will sleep half-under the bed... with his ass hanging out (ignore my boyfriend's mess there)




Or if he's lucky he'll tunnel his way underneath the bed... like in this picture where he's behind my boyfriend's pajama pants, beside the wall and in front of the storage bins.

Note: I think he likes to sleep under there because of his failing vision. The vet believes he has little vision at night... so I think Dingle may want to sleep under there because he feels safe and protected.

When he's not under the bed he's usually on the hardwood floor. Geeze Ding, you have so many beds, but you choose the floor.

Anyways, today he was in the bed and all I could smell was ketchup.

Why?

Well on Earth Day we went downtown to get our free Brita pitcher (they were handing them out... to get people to stop using bottled water).

My boyfriend and I took 2 of the dogs with us, for a little outing. While in the awful, awful long line (I don't think I'd do it again) my boyfriend had a hot dog - which was loaded with ketchup, mayo, onions, etc.

Well, before my boyfriend finished the hot dog, a huge drop of ketchup fell... right onto Dinglehopper who was sitting underneath him.

The pug/bulldog that was with us didn't seem interested in licking it out of his fur. I found this crazy, because that dog eats/licks anything. Literally... anything, don't get me started on that one.

I wiped it out as best as I could, but it was like the ketchup got lost in a maze of fluffy pom hair.

When I got home Dingle had a spot wash... so he's clean, but the ketchup smell continues to linger.

Of course this all happened only 1 week after his $60 grooming.

What has Dingle's puppy miller been up to the last 3 years?

A few years ago, when I first got Dinglehopper I learned, thanks to people at www.nopuppymills.com/www.petshoppuppies.org, how to request United States Department of Agriculture reports on Dingle's breeder and broker.

You are only able to request the documents for a 3 year period - so back then I requested them from July 2003-July 2006. They showed information such as how many dogs she bought in a 1 (business) year period, how many she sold, the total gross dollar amount from sales, etc.

On March 14th I requested them again - from July 2006-March 2009. They came today - super fast - last time I ordered them they took months. Though the Hunte Corporation ones (which I also requested March 14th) will take forever.

Let's see what Dingle's breeder was up to:

Before we begin, this isn't confidential information - it's all available through the Freedom of Information Act... all you have to do is request it.

So, on her March 2006 application for license she states that she purchase 13 dogs in the last business year and sold 103. The "total gross dollar amount derived from regulated activities (sales, booking fees, commissions, etc." was $23,186.15 (USD).

All she had to do is submit that information and a $235.00 renewal fee and boom, she's back in puppy mill business for another year.

Let's see what the following year had to bring: Her April 2007 application said she purchased (likely from the miller down the road) 26 dogs and sold 139. Slight increase. Money wise I'm happy to report that she made less - $22,690.38. Okay, maybe not all that much less.

Oh wait, what's this? She had an inspection on April 17th 2007 and she was in violation. Here's some of what it says:

"In the refrigerator in the main dog building West of the house, the following medications were found to be out of date. 1. One bottle of injectible Oxytocin, expired on 3/03. 2. One bottle of injectible Penecillin, expired in April 2006. All expired medications, which may no longer be effective or potentially harmful if given to the dogs, must be properly labelled, separated or discarded in a timely manner to prevent their accidental usage".

Hm. March 2003 the Oxytocin expired? Christ lady that was 4 years ago!

Luckily for Mrs. puppy miller she still got to keep her license and it was renewed the following year.

Let's check out May 2008's application:

She only bought 9 dogs. Oh, but wait, she sold 149. I wonder how many of those were fucked up? Bet there's a portion of them with luxating patellas and Progressive Retinal Atrophy. That business year she made $26,974.85.

She's due to submit a renewal application any time... should have held off on my request so I could have seen that one as well. I'll just request it in a few months, I guess. Does the recession hit puppy millers?

I hate this woman - even more so when a few years ago the Companion Animal Protection Society sent an undercover investigator out to her place and got hidden footage. I got to actually see the Amish puppy miller that she is. I heard the dogs barking non-stop and saw them in their chicken coops, pacing back and fourth going crazy.

Bitch!

Since I got Dinglehopper I've thought about writing her a letter or calling her (I've had her phone number in my cell for years)... but I didn't know what approach to take: the "fuck you, you puppy miller" approach or to pretend I had no idea she was evil and take a "As a reputable breeder I thought you'd like to know how one of your puppies is doing".

Suggestions?

So, if anyone has a pet shop puppy from the USA and wants to trace it's origin here's what you do:

Send an EMail to foia.officer@aphis.usda.gov and say something like this:

" I would like to request all USDA inspection reports on the following individuals: (breeder USDA licence number, individual name, business name, address). Please include all information available under the Freedom of Information Act, including actual inspections, pictures, correspondences, administrative actions, warnings, or any other information available. I'd like to request this information for the following time period - (3 year period)"

Make sure to include your address. You can also submit this request through their website, but it was down when I requested them this year.

Noodles

I work overnights as a social worker... and I'm very lucky that Dinglehopper loves to sleep.

He'll sleep all night with my boyfriend. When I get home in the morning he'll go outside for a very brief walk, will do his 'business' and we'll head back inside.

Once inside he'll get his 'dinner'... and I'll have to sit next to him for the next 20 minutes while he slowly pecks away at his food.

He needs lots of encouragement, so to speak, at times... how long does it take to eat 1/3 of a cup of food? In Dingle's world a long time. I'd leave him to eat on his own but he'd starve... because my boyfriend's dogs (pug mixes, huge pigs) would eat it all.

So it comes down to "Dingle... eat your dinner"

(5 minutes pass)

"DINGLE... dinner!"

(Dingle picks up a kibble and holds it in his mouth for a few seconds)

(Dingle spits it out and looks at it)

(Then he picks the kibble back up and bites it in half)

(Out come both halves... Dingle sniffs both and eventually picks one half up and eats it)

...

and we continue that way for a long period of time and then its bed time.

I know Dingle is really attached to me and loves me, but someone explain to me why that requires him to curl up on the pillow beside me, with his butt hole mere inches from my face. Ew.

Okay, insert jokes here about Dinglehopper's "dingleberries"... for the record, no, he doesn't have them. If he gets 'messy' he gets a bath, pronto. He also gets groomed fairly regularly to keep his butt hair under control.

Anyways... luckily he eventually decides that it's more fun to sleep under the bed... tucked away in behind the under-the-bed storage containers.

Before work tonight I gave the dogs a cookie and as I was leaving said "be good Dingle" (translation don't piss on the leg of the coffee table)

2 seconds later he looks at me, starts marking a wretching sound and barfs up a multigrain pasta noodle and then goes back to staring at me. Where he got that noodle, who knows. Suprisingly the cookie he had just eaten stayed down...

I'm still at work... but am hoping that the puked up pasta wasn't a sign of more 'fun' Dingle had in store for me... maybe it was his way of saying "Screw you... don't work, stay home with me".

Sorry Dinglehopper - vet visits, leg surgeries, etc. aren't free... the money has to come from somewhere...

The Basic Summary of Dinglehopper's Life.

Okay, where to start...

This blog will be about Dinglehopper - my 3.5 year old Pomeranian Puppy.

Dinglehopper was born, supposedly, on September 8th, 2005. He was born in an Amish Puppy Mill in Missouri. Versailles, to be a little more specific.

Dinglehopper was sold to the Hunte Corporation - a Corporation that buys from backyard breeders, puppy millers, etc. and resells these dogs to pet stores.

After spending some time (which was probably just awful) at the Hunte Corporation Dingle was shoved in a Mac Truck and shipped off to Canada - to a pet store that sold him for an outrageous price.

I supported puppy mills and the stupid Hunte Corporation by buying Dingle. I live with that guilt each and every day.

Dingle is a health/genetic nightmare. The health problems are endless and include 3 surgeries for luxating patellas, Giaradia, respiratory infections, "dry eye", Progressive Retinal Atrophy (going blind at 3 years old), yada, yada, yada.

I have a website for Dingle. It is www.freewebs.com/michelle_and_dinglehopper.

You can read all about Dinglehopper there and follow his ongoing health problems.

This blog will talk a bit about that, but will mostly include day to day stuff about Dinglehopper - stuff that might not otherwise fit on Dinglehopper's website... this blog will contain sarcasm, the occasional swear word and blah, blah. Don't like that? Well, this isn't the blog for you.