December

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Wow I can't believe its already the end of December! It seems December has come and gone with the blink of an eye! And what an eventful month it was!

At the beginning of the month I went on a girls trip to Vegas with my sister and Mum. I can't remember the last time the three of us went on a trip together...just before Sis got married I think. Vegas was good. It was my second time there and the first for Sis and Mum. They both said they were glad they went and saw and had fun but don't think they would ever want to go back. I have to agree. It was good to spend time with them though and hope we can go on another girls trip soon. You can see a few pics of our trip from 'Henrii's' point of view here.

I got home from Vegas just in time for Hammie's birthday, see previous blog post. Then a few days later Dave and I took off to Hawaii. It was our first time there and we loved it!! Hawaii was never high on our list of places to travel but the deals were too good to pass up and we were feeling a bit depressed with all the dreary weather. We had a great time and would definitely go back. Here are two of my favorite pics from our trip:

Me reflecting on all the good things in life and feeling really lucky.
(photo taken by Dave)

Pic of the sun setting. I like this picture b/c I feel like the sun rays are reaching out
to me and they look like flower petals (photo taken with my iphone)

You can see more pics of Hawaii from 'Henrii's' point of view here.
 
My top 2 favorite memories of the trip include:
- getting a surprise helicopter ride from Dave. I felt like the bachelorette (yes I watch that cheesy show). It was the first time for both of us riding in a helicopter and definitely got to see parts of the island from 2 of the best seats! 
- floating around in the ocean with Dave, waiting and watching for the sun to set. We managed to catch a few waves on our inter tubes (we called them 'bubbles'). True paradise! I'll never forget that day *big sigh*!

We got home from Hawaii just in time to get ready for Christmas. Christmas yesterday was great. We went over to my sister's house for a family dinner with my sister's family, my parents and Dave's parents. The pups had fun running around, sniffing out cousin Max the Cat and sharing bison bones with cousin Moby the Lab. They both got the cutest little scarves and neat biodegradable booties from Auntie and Uncle. I think Auntie felt they might need them after she saw ZuZu's facebook pictures of the booties we tried to make out of duct tape (hey they look cute though don't they?)! :P

The pups were sooo tired from all the activities (so was I). As soon as we got home Hampton ran for his favorite spot on the couch and started rolling around on his back as if to say "aaahhhh feels good to be home...good night!!"

All in all, December was good to me / us this year. I'm a little sad to see it all end (vacations, time off work, presents, shopping, etc!!) but at the same time ready for 2011!

xo
Grace

Happy 2nd Birthday Hammie!

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Its our little baby monster's birthday today (lol), Saturday December 4th! We can't believe he's 2 already and at the same time has only been with us that long.  Over the last 2 years we have seen and enjoyed many sides of our little Hampton Monroe. Here are just a few pictures that help describe his colorful character:

Sweet puppy Hampton, about 3 months old:

Ham being a "ham":

 Resourceful (?) Hammie:

Handsome Hampton:

Happy Birthday Hammie!  Lots of lub, Mummy & Daddy!

Remembering Starbuck

2 years ago today Starbuck passed from a very bad cancer, hemangiosarcoma. There was a time when we couldn't even say out lout or write that he had cancer. We thought somehow this non-admission might reverse his diagnosis.  But it didn't. We still miss Starbuck with all our hearts. We still think about what more we could have done or what we should have done. But because of him, we cherish every moment we have now with ZuZu and Hampton. We still believe he is with us and his spirit does live on through Zu and Ham.

We love and still miss you very much Starbuck! xxoo

dogs, thailand and voluntourism!

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I've always wanted to go on a volunteer vacation and maybe this is something in our (or your) near future??

If you love dogs and want to visit Thailand, how about trying out this new voluntourism program, organized through Cultural Canvas Thailand.




I would love to do this one day. The only drawback would be leaving our bb's behind! I think I'm going to put a volunteer vacation helping dogs / animals on my bucket list!

having a bad day?

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For anyone having a bad day, you have to watch this video of a cute dreaming puppy (shown on The Ellen Show)!

Enjoy!

latest cool and fun stuff at puppyjones.com

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Hi all!
I can't believe its already mid / late October! The year is just flying by! The other day, Dave and I were reflecting on how our little web site has grown since we re-launched it back in January. A few of these include: actually getting the web site up and running again, having our comic featured bi-weekly in The Anipal Times, getting our trademark in Canada and US finalized and the latest is having our t-shirt and Hampton Monroe featured in an online Indian Magazine "Woof!". Its a small feature but a feature none the less! And we are happy for the opportunity to reach out to readers internationally!

This is a screenshot from the Anipal Times home page featuring our comic!

 

Doesn't Hampton look so handsome featuring one of our "Jonesin' for Puppy Love" t-shirts?

We are also having fun with making our videos of the bb's. Dave recently put together a video story about Hampton plotting to steal ZuZu's t.b. Some of the footage really makes me laugh: the scene where Hampton ruins it for himself by lunging out at ZuZu and forgetting about t.b., and the scene where ZuZu is sitting on the armchair all victorious from getting her t.b. back. lol!

If you haven't seen it yet, click here and have a peek at it!

For those of you who have seen us grow from when we first launched back in 2004 and those who just discovered our web site, thank you for visiting us. We hope we can continue to grow and share our story for the love of our pups with you for a long time!

xo
Grace (aka Mummy)

banning puppy sales in the mall

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A city in British Columbia, Canada (Richmond) is considering banning puppy sales in pet stores.

See video here. What do you think? Will it stop the evil puppy mills?

puppy jonesin: dog who loves to swing!

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♥ ♥ ♥
Puppy Jonesin' [pepi-jone-sIn]: verb a crazy irresistible love for dogs.
PuppyJones is short for Puppy Jonesin'. We feel this is a perfect way to define how crazy we feel about our furry babies - and we know there are a whole lot of you who feel the same. We're all jonesin' for puppy love!
♥ ♥ ♥
 
This is so funny and cute! Starbuck may have liked this. ZuZu would be too scared and Hampton's motion sickness would get in the way. But this sweet lab has no problems and loves to swing!

See more funny videos and Cute Animals Videos at Today's Big Thing.

If you have any tips, pics, news or examples of others who are Puppy Jonesin', feel free to email us or let us know. :)

my poor 'barking dogs'

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Did you know "barking dogs" was once used as an idiom for sore feet? Well today I wore these new shoes to work and OMG the dogs were definitely barking! I thought I was going to die by the end of the day. But they are so pretty that I can't help but still love them! ♥

p.s. the framed picture is of Starbuck and ZuZu :)

thundershirt review

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Ever since Hampton was a young pup he has had pretty bad car sickness which included excessive drooling, puking and whining. We tried everything from treats, positive reinforcement, favorite blankets / beds, short rides, etc etc. but nothing seemed to work.

About a month ago we were introduced to the thundershirt via Hampton's beagle friend Dukey whose Dad runs When Hounds Fly! Positive Reinforcement Dog Training (they also sell the thundershirt). We were pretty excited about trying it out.

We first let Hampton wear it around the house. Almost immediately we saw a change in him. He was much calmer and relaxed. We were pleased with that. We also let ZuZu try it out on our walks (she yaps quite a bit and gets excited very easily). We didn't see a great deal of change in ZuZu but noticed she wasn't as yappy.

After a few weeks of letting Hampton wear it around the house doing different activities (so he didn't associate it with car rides) we finally decided to try it out in the car and...success!  We drove to a nearby dog park / beach (about a 20 min drive away) and there was no drooling or puke! He usually pukes right on the 12 min mark of a drive. He was even able to sit and lie down in the car (usually stands). It was so nice to actually drive them somewhere and have a nice day with them without worrying about Ham's car sickness.

So, we are pretty happy with the results so far. Fingers and paws crossed for more success in the future on extended car rides! We would really love to take them on a road trip soon!

interesting video on history of pet food

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Hampton's facebook pal, Abby Wabby Beagle-Chan (isn't that such a cute name?!), posted this video "The Truth About Pet Food". It provides an interesting history on how pet food came about and information on what should NOT be in pet food.

If you're not interested in the 'commercial' part of the video that starts at the 11min mark.

raw food update

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Please note: Always consult with your veterinarian first before changing to raw food!

We've been feeding the bb's raw food for over a week now. The first week we fed them a turkey mix and gave that to them for a week to help with transition. They say you can switch to raw food cold turkey without experiencing the diarrhea etc and it was true. There was no diarrhea. But, we stuck with the turkey for a full week just in case.

Based on consultations we have decided to try the following (for now):
- turkey mix (mixed with some veggies)
- salmon
- lamb

I recently learned that we can just alternate between the three, e.g. Monday: Turkey, Tuesday: Salmon, Wednesday: Lamb, Thursday: Turkey, Tuesday: Salmon...etc etc. That makes it real easy! I thought there was a big formula behind it all but it really is that simple! Especially because we decided to buy pre-mixed packages (has all the right amount of bone, veggies, meat mixed for you).

One thing to note however is how much to feed. Here is a link to a calculator that will help determine how much food to give per day http://www.raw4dogs.com/calculate.htm

Benefits we've noticed so far:

We have noticed that ZuZu has more energy. She is also really eager to eat her food. With kibble she had to be encouraged. Now she just gobbles up whatever is placed in front of her!

Almost instantly we saw a change in Hampton's ears. I was shocked. However, just in the last few days there has been a little bit of discharge. His ears are also still dry and a bit swollen but nothing like they were before. Our vet said it will take a while for his immune system to change and his allergy may not necessarily be linked to his food but something in the environment. So, we will wait and see how things go. 

And last but not least, well least in some sense....we are seeing smaller poop! Their poop is less frequent and much smaller in size! This is definitely a benefit - less to pick up :)

raw food here we come!

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We've been thinking about switching the pups to a raw food diet for a while and finally taking the plunge! We did give Starbuck and ZuZu a home cooked diet when Sb got cancer but since Hampton joined our family we went back to kibble. Honestly, at the time it was just easier. However, Hampton has had a re-occurring yeasty ear infection the last few months that just won't go away and we hope this will help solve the problem.  As well, ZuZu is also getting older, she turned 9 this year,  and we want her to be as healthy as possible for the next 10!

When we first started looking into making the change it was a little daunting I admit. There is so much information out here and it almost did turn me off. I like simple and easy, especially when it comes to preparing food (hec I rarely cook for Dave!). I was also worried about ensuring the pups would be getting a balanced diet (e.g. the right amount of calcium, protein, veggies etc etc). Luckily, we were referred by our vet's office to a natural pet food store with an owner who is extremely knowledgeable and helpful. Yay! It was like finding our own dog dietitian!

For now they are starting off on a Turkey Veggie blend (we went cold Turkey on Turkey! lol) by 3P Naturals (a local company). Zu and Hammie both loved it! I'll write a bit more about their meal plan and progress in the days to come (in case anyone else out there is curious or has been confused with raw diets too). :) 

Oh and if anyone has any tips to share, we'd appreciate the info!

our trip to california (comic con)

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Wow, I feel like I've been away from the internet world for sooo long! There is so much to update you on! Dave and I just got back from vacation (in California) yesterday and we are pooped.

I thought we would have internet access on this trip but turns out the access was quite limited. So all the updates I wanted to do along the way didn't get done! The last 3 days of our trip we did get free unlimited access but we changed the permission settings on our laptop to enhance security and ended up locking ourselves out! Murphy's law? Anyway, we had a great time.  Here is a short summary of what we did:

- Golfed in Palm Springs - It was crazy hot and we were the ONLY golfers on the course that day. We had to play though as there was just nothing else to do out there! At least we can say we did it.
- Went to Disneyland - It was my 1st time ever and finally full-filled a childhood dream.
- Went to Universal Studios
- Spent a night in LA. The night we were there it happened to be the premiere of the movie SALT. We spotted some stars: Brangelina, Naomi Watts and Liev Schrieber, Jon Voight...we also attended a concert at the Hollywood Bowl (the best time on the trip I have to say)
- And finally, we attended the Comic Con in San Diego! This was the main purpose of our trip to Cali. It was crazy busy and we had lots of fun. I even wore a Puppy Jones t-shirt because it is my favorite comic of course! :)

There is so much we wanted to do and see but once you pick a room you are pretty much stuck in there, otherwise you loose your seat and can't get in anywhere else. Some of the panels we saw included: Tron Legacy, Megamind, RED, Expendables, The Simpsons, Fringe, Chuck, V for Visitors....One of the definite highlights though was when we met Snoopy! He was so sweet and cuddly.

Charlie Brown and Snoopy were on the cover of the Comic Con programs - they are celebrating 60 years in the industry! Wow 60 years. Go Snoopy! 

It was a great trip. We had lots of fun but its nice to be back home with the bb's. I missed them so much! We even drew our latest comic about how much we miss them! :)

Well, its getting late. Hampton is ringing his bell for his late night potty break so better go. Thanks for reading about our trip. 



xo
Grace

puppy jones is sneeping the next few days

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Hey All! Sorry we haven't posted in a while. There is so much to update you on (e.g. the amazing Anipal Academy Awards event, our trip to Disneyland, our upcoming comic con experience etc etc). We'll be back soon to update, promise!

Thanks for checking in!

wordless wednesdays

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Hi All
Starting tomorrow the bb's will start "wordless wednesday" posts on their blog. Enjoy!

our comics and the anipal times

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I'm thrilled to report our comic will be featured every other week by The Anipal Times! We are very excited an honored to be part of this family.

"The Anipal Times was founded in March 2010 to give the Twitter anipals* a central place to find, write, share and link to content, news, announcements and events in the anipal community and beyond. There is an amazing community of anipals creating all sorts of great things around the web, but the more it grows, the harder it becomes to locate and keep up with it all. Most communities have a newspaper and now we have one too."

We will still post our comics on our comic blog so you can still access them here. Drawing the comics for The Anipal Times will also motivate us to get them out on a more regular basis (I know I've been slacking a bit on that!).

On a related but seperate note, I also would like to take the opportunity to redeem myself from the last comic write up for "Mummy Farts" (our first comic to be featured on The Anipal Times). Dave wrote the following to go along with the comic on our blog:

"Mummy tends to have some pretty loud farts. Must be all of the peas she eats. She conveniently blames it on ZuZu due to the fact that we once put her on a low carb diet that seemed to produce some very interesting smells. With bb (bad breath) and smelly farts, ZuZu can't seem to catch a break."

What is false in that statement: "Mummy tends to have some pretty loud farts" - I have to object! I have no idea what he's talking about! My farts are quiet and smell like flowers!  ;0)