There's a reason for this blogs name...

The doghouse has added one more to the pack. Sadie, an amazing 3 year old female German Shepherd.  As you can probably guess by her age she is a rescue. A totally unplanned adoption, but she was the perfect German Shepherd for us.

So the question is then – how do you adopt a dog without planning on it? Well here it is…. I work as many of you know for the City of Temple which has of course a website that I am on nearly daily. One of the tabs is Pets of the Week. I can’t help but click on it and see all these adorable animals in need of a home. Oh but I am wise and knew that with a small house, two teens and a busy schedule that we all have adding another dog to the pack could wait…. That is until last Thursday when the new posting for the week went up and there was Sadie with the sweetest face and most beautiful eyes and a story that breaks your heart and makes you wonder why some people own dogs.

Sadie had been living on a farm with cattle.  She was left to roam around all the time unsupervised. She had received numerous injuries to her left leg  there was so much scar tissue from untreated injuries her leg was full of lumps. She also had a more recent severe injury to her tail. She couldn’t walk and was in a great deal of pain.  Her owners instead of taking her to the Vet took her to the pound and dropped her off.   Now luckily the Temple shelter is a limited no-kill facility, so after the Vet checked her out and determined she could be helped with surgery they were able to access the needed funds from the Ida Oliffe Foundation .  So Sadie got her surgery and then waited for a new home. Several people inquired and some even came to see her, but they were worried about long term health issues.  Sadie continued to wait… that’s where I come in, and see her face online.  For two days I kept it to myself. Not another dog, not a German Shepherd, love the breed but the fur is everywhere and those tails – the can destroy a home in minutes. I had sworn never another one.  I also felt that there could never  be one to match how awesome Capone was (our late great beauty). But I couldn’t stop thinking about her so I broke down and showed Alan – love at first sight.  So on Monday morning I emailed the Animal shelter to get her story and see if she was still available. She was still waiting. She went on to explain what surgeries had been done and one of them was her tail had to be docked due to the severity of her injuries. A tailless German Shepherd,  it can’t be, she’s perfect! I made an appointment to go see her at lunch. 

Sadie is the consummate female German Shepherd.  Cautious, loyal, clever and oh so sweet, I knew she was perfect for us.  They insisted I pick her up that afternoon before 5:00.  It is a very simple process when you work for the City of Temple, sign the agreement, no fees to be paid (a fringe benefit). I took her to the car and she hopped right in, sat down and rode for awhile looking out the window, then she went to sleep for the remainder of the drive.

She’s been with us now for four days and is fitting in so perfectly. Her appetite was a bit off the first two days, but now she’s eating three times a day with biscuits in between. She does need to gain about twenty pounds to be at her ideal weight. She is so thin right now. Schindler is a bit jealous of her and keeps giving her the evil eye hoping she will disappear, Bonnie just tries to ignore her. Sadie isn’t too bothered by either one as she is getting so much attention from the human pack. Fantu is crazy about her,  Abate not so much, but he will scratch her ears.  Alan and I of course are thrilled to have her in our pack. She may just end up being the top dog around if we don’t watch it.

 

 

 

9000 Feet Above Stress Level

9000 Feet Above Stress Level is the slogan for the village of Cloudcroft where myself, Abate, Elmer and Fantu spent a week on vacation in mid-July. It is a slogan well deserved. We escaped the Texas heat and the daily highs pushing the 100 degree mark for Cloudcroft’s daily highs in the low 70’s. Texas was barely seeing 70’s as its overnight lows which in Cloudcroft by the way were 49-52 degrees. Rain showers were brief and fell in the late afternoon on two occasions. It was what I consider perfect weather.

I rented a cabin for the week, a cute little two bedroom right in the village. It was up a very steep hill which my poor car struggled with the first time as it was packed so heavily with people and possessions. As I pulled in I was surprised at the closeness of the next door neighbor and was a bit concerned, but we soon realized that the house was positioned to afford a very private layout and back deck left us feeling we were off alone on the hillside. The deck was large with several sitting areas, a large fire pit and a BBQ grill. I knew that we would enjoy many evenings sitting out on it. The house was beautifully decorated. It was cozy and extremely comfortable. The kitchen was a cooks dream with many gourmet features, I knew I’d made the right choice in a rental. This would be an amazing home for the week.

I choose Cloudcroft because it has a wide choice of trails running all over the Lincoln National Forest. It would be ideal for Abate and Elmer to run and train for the upcoming cross country season. Fantu and I could hike some and I had hoped to do some bike riding but due to a lack of time in the previous months to get back in shape that really wasn’t an option this time. Cloudcroft is also located just above the Tularosa Basin, a high desert that is home to the White Sands National Monument. It is an amazing sight to see and with its large dunes of crystal white gypsum sand it makes for a fun time sledding. Sledding in the summer can be quite an experience as it was around 90 degrees in the desert and the sun reflected off the sand that only intensified the heat. The kids played hard and worked up an appetite that led us to a real gem of a restaurant that served New Mexico’s regional style of Mexican food. In case you are wondering, green chilies dominate the sauces, it was really good with outstanding service. I will return to Tio Lupes on my next trip, and if ever you are passing through Alamogordo stop and give them a try.

Our hikes took us on trails in the 9000 foot mountains, another at 6500 feet led us on a more semi-arid trail mid-way up from the basin. While the temperatures were not as cool at 6500 feet the 3.6 mile hike took us to a very nice waterfall that the kids could play in and around. It was a really good time and we had the place to ourselves.

Well no trip is complete though without doing a bit of shopping. Cloudcroft has a nice assortment of shops (unless you need food) and we were able to pick up a few things to bring home. A shop selling fudge had a nice assortment including one made with chilies. It may sound weird but it was addictively tasty. Pistachios are grown in the Tularosa basin so we of course had to stop and buy a few bags. Again there was the famous New Mexican chili being used to season something, this time it leant it punch to the pistachios and once again they were addictive they were so good.

So 9000 feet above stress level was a really nice place to be. Fantu commented to be on several occasions that she had never seen me relax and she was happy that I actually could sit down and chill out. It was a great week and it was difficult to leave. We have some really good memories to keep us going and lots of great photos. I think they will tell the rest of the story.