Reasons to Rescue: Keller

I previously posted my first installment of Reasons to Rescue awhile back and of course I intend to include all my current rescues, but I just had to post one about my most recent rescue, Keller.  As some of you know, I am involved with PNC Midwest Rescue.  We are most involved with the rescuing, fostering and adoptions of the Pekingese and Japanese Chin breeds (Tibetan Spaniels when they come around), but also rescue the small fluffy breeds when needed.  Many of the dogs that come into our group come from kill shelters, owner surrenders, hoarding situations and puppy mills. 

Keller, Dec. 7, 2016- the day he was sprung!

Keller came to the group when someone alerted us to a Pekingese at an Iowa no-kill shelter that was blind and a senior- neither are a combination that made him likely to get adopted from a shelter.  He was found as a stray wandering the streets in a large town- BLIND.  His owner never came forward and he had been at the shelter for about a month.   I was recruited to pick this guy up and we were supposed to have an immediate foster lined up for him, but she backed out.  After having him for only 24 hours, I offered to foster him (I have a soft spot for seniors and special needs dogs).  He quickly started to grow on me and was not receiving interest from our available dogs lists.  I soon started to realize that I wasn't sure I would be able to part with him when the time came for him to be adopted.  I decided to keep him.  And here's why he's so great:

Despite being blind, Keller is extremely capable of having a great life.  It only took him about two days to feel out the layout of our house and yard.  He can do steps in our house with ease and has figured out to adjust when he senses that something has been moved to a different position.  One of the most impressive things is when he is hanging out in the kitchen and hears the sound of the steam mop and/or smells the cleaner being applied to the floor, he will hop up on a step in order to be out of the way and not step in the cleaner.  None of my other dogs seem to understand how to do this.  They either stand right in my way or walk through the cleaner.

He's soooo intimidating, no?

Another thing that astounds me and makes me love Keller is that he is protective.  Even though he often has no idea what he is barking at, when he's outside and smells someone or something unfamiliar he will run towards it and stand at the fence barking.  Although he a small dog, his bark can sound pretty intimidating.  I've had to let a few delivery people and neighbors know that he is blind and very protective.  They are amazed because you'd think most blind dogs would hide from the unknown.  There have been a couple times when a "stranger" has come to the house and he will stand between me and them and bark.  I pick him up and let him know that I'm safe. 

Lastly (although there are so many things) is that he seems to sense when I am leaving.  He will follow me to the door and try to dart out and run to the gate where I leave.  Of course it breaks my heart to seem him stand there when I leave, so I make sure not to let him go out when I go.  However, when I am going out the door for some other reason, like to go downstairs or just go into the backyard, he doesn't follow me.  He will just lie in his bed or mosey about in his usual Keller fashion.  You might be telling yourself that this is merely a coincidence, but it isn't.  How he knows, I have no idea- maybe he can smell my shoes, maybe he senses my excitement about the possibility of freedom from my children... no clue.

Keller is amazing.  How he ended up in a shelter with no owner to be found, I will never understand. I know it is hard for some people to want to go to a shelter and adopt the "less adoptable" dogs, but Keller is a great example of why people need to consider it.  Older dogs, special needs dogs, deserve to live their lives in a loving and comfortable home.  Imagine if you ever get to the age where you need to be cared for or even enter assisted living- how would you want to live out your remaining years?  Exactly.  And dogs like Keller deserve that too.  But you must go find your own Keller, cause I'm keeping this one!

             Keller, one month ago, sharing a pillow with Buddy, another rescue.  I've had Buddy about two years and have never seen him attempt to share a bed with any other dog!  Keller is truly amazing!

March 28 is National Respect Your Cat Day! (Twitter Party!!)

If you have a cat, you know they DEMAND respect daily- otherwise they'd let you know how unappreciated they feel by clawing your favorite shirt or leaving dead mice on your pillow.  As an avid cat lady, I know all about this demand.  With my love for kitties in mine,  I'm paw-tnering with Morris the Cat for the most important day of the year: Respect Your Cat Day!

"Morris is throwing the first #RespectYourCat Twitter Party to celebrate this most impurrtant holiday. Come and join in on the fun and furry festivities -- we'll be sharing informative tips on how to treat your cat like royalty, all the cute Internet cat photos you can handle and fun surprises galore!"

For those of you unfamiliar with Twitter Parties, they are really fun and oftentimes, huge, live chats on Twitter that use specific hashtags to connect participants to the conversation stream. 

 

 I will be joining Morris and all the cats humans at #RespectYourCat Night on Monday, March 28, from 8-10 pm ET (5-7 pm PT). 

Please RSVP here to join the fun:  http://tweetvite.com/event/respectyourcatnight

or via Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/events/1707890296161301/

Feel free to Tweet me, let me know on Facebook or comment below on the things you do for your cat to show it respect OR the things IT will do when you don't!  My story to share is that my ex-husband didn't respect my cats and when he was especially rude to them, they would occasionally pee on his pillow or his spot of the bed.  I took the hint!

I don't own MOMONTHERANDOM.COM anymore!

If you go to the website directly, you will be in for a surprise!  So as many websites do, they will buy expired websites that previously had a lot of traffic and will buy those domains to get their "product"  out.  So anyway, go there at your own risk, but I'm not affiliated with it anymore!

You Can't Take It With You

No, I'm not talking about the AMAZING 1938 movie starring Jimmy Stewart and Jean Arthur (although it is definitely worth the watch!!)  I'm talking about THINGS, material things.  If you haven't heard the euphemism "you can't take it with you," it is referring to the things you can't take with you when you die.  Whether you believe in heaven, hell, reincarnation, or no after-life at all, you can't take THINGS with you.  Can you take memories?  Maybe.  I have no idea.  I like to think that heaven is a place where when you die any person or pet that you ever loved will be there waiting for you.  Now, I said that you loved, not that they loved you.  So your crazy stalker Brad wouldn't be there.

I digress.  In the last couple months, I have been a clutter cleaning machine in my house (thanks, New Meds!)  I have been rearranging cabinets, closets, drawers, boxes and totes in my house.  The amount of time spent could have lasted an entire Law & Order Netflix binge-a-thon- of all three spin-offs!  Often I found myself reiterating the lyric, "let it go" as I stood frozen (pun!) between where I was standing and the trash can/recycling bin.  When it comes to kitchens and closets, it's more of an inner struggle with the thought that I know I don't NEED it and perhaps haven't used/worn it in years (if ever), but what if I DO need it.  Example: grapefruit spoon.  You know how many times in my adult life that I've bought a grapefruit?  ZERO.  You know how many times my husband or children have requested a grapefruit?  ZERO.  Can you eat a grapefruit without a grapefruit spoon?  I don't know, I never have, but I'm like 95% sure you can (may have to check out YouTube to see how it's done.)  I've gotten a lot better about clothes over the past few years.  There's always that idea that maybe some day I will wear that dress or maybe one day I will fit into the jeans ago.  No, you won't.  Get rid of it.  Of course, you can't throw it in the trash, there's homeless people out there!  I either donate or consign clothes in my house that no one wears anymore.

Then we come down to the more difficult things- memorabilia.  I've carried around a tote for about 10 years that contains items from my life that span 34 25 years (literally have the hospital bracelet from the day I was born.)  I have everything from pictures, childhood awards, 6th place medals (ha), report cards, high school writing assignments, and so forth.  I know that there have been a select few people that have suffered through me showing them some of those things.  And you can tell when someone doesn't care what you're saying (I'm married.)  So this past weekend it was time to go through the tote- the MEMORY TOTE.  I went through every folder, binder, envelope, photo album and loose bauble.  And I recycled... A LOT.  I went through every photo and tossed ones that were pointless and meant nothing to anyone.  I took pictures of the pictures that might be fun to share on Facebook.  And I kept a very select few pictures that PERHAPS my children will want to see some day.

So when does a memory become obsolete?  Here's how I see it.  If I am hanging onto something, the only real purpose should be to pass these things onto my children or perhaps at least show them once they are adults.  My mom hung on to some of these things.  I'm sure in her mind all this stuff she collected through the years would be of great significance... sorry, Mom, most of it went in the recycling bin.  Do I need my first quarter report card from 6th grade?  Not so much.  Will my kids wanna see it when they are 40?  Pretty positive they won't.  So that's what I did.  I cleared out almost my ENTIRE tote.  I put anything I wanted to keep into manilla envelopes and categorized them.  Other than that, I had a few pictures in frames and a couple medals that I kept out of the folders.  I was able to clear out the tote so much that I fit two smaller shoe box size totes inside of it!

Life feels so much better without clutter- both metaphorically and literally.  Now I have so much less that I will have to move whenever I leave my current digs.  I've made some sweet coin over the past two months since consigning bags and bags of non-necessities.  And yet I still find more and more every day that I don't understand why it is still lingering in my house.

Do I need two unopened air pumps for when a football deflates?  Nope.

Do you?