The white stuff is melting fast now, but before that happened I snapped some footage of these Kansas City canines carousing in the snow.
Blog Archives
Party Time with Mom
It’s her day.
Who’s the real party animal in this picture?
This is the woman who taught me how to love unconditionally and that your baby, no matter how many legs it has or how ill-mannered it can be, should be doted on and cuddled as much as possible.
Case in point: Tori the rat terrier who’s giving the camera the stinkeye.
Today, I’ll be spending a good part of the day with my mom, celebrating our relationship and dining on tasty, locally prepared food.
Our ultimate hope is to get tickets for a tour of Boulevard Brewery, the internationally renowned craft beer company based in Kansas City.
She better leave that Spuds Mackenzie apron at home, though.
Happy Mother’s Day to all of the moms out there! Whether your puppies have two legs or four, you deserve some appreciation for a job well done!
A Tale of Two Cincos
The best part about having a very tiny dog is how easy it is to take him everywhere.
Scooby the elderpin and I met for the first time at a party, and he has continued to be a social fellow through our six+ years together, zipping underfoot at events I hosted and making the rounds from the crook of my arm during gatherings outside of our home.
Cinco de Mayo, 2009:
Cinco de Mayo, 2009
The occasion: a vegetarian potluck, at my then-friend Zach’s house.
Zach had not yet encountered a certain golden retriever wandering the streets of Kansas City but welcomed my miniature pinscher into his dogless home for the party.
As soon as we arrived, a tiny sombrero was produced, furnished by a neighbor especially for Scooby.
In addition to the dog, I also brought a bowl full of guacamole made from overripe avocados. It wasn’t very good, but the guests pretended not to notice. Meanwhile, I pretended not to hang on my handsome host’s every word.
And Scooby didn’t have a single accident on the floor.
Cinco de Mayo, 2013:
Cinco de Mayo 2013
The occasion: Kansas City’s Cinco de Mayo Chihuahua Parade.
This year, I found myself in good company as a person with a novelty-sized canine.
Although this local attempt to break a world record for number of dogs in costume was open to all breeds, its advertisement as a Chihuahua-centric gathering attracted a preponderance of people with very small dogs of presumably Mexican heritage.
His sombrero long since gone, Scooby (who is often mistaken for a Chihuahua) sported his official KC Pittie Pack hoodie – and for most of the day, a blanket.
It was so unseasonably chilly, that Scooby’s new friend Piper, a teacup Chihuahua of just 2.5 pounds, never even fully emerged from Kennel Creek trainer Diana’s lunchbag pet carrier.
Is that a pup or a peanut?
Despite the cold weather and a turnout not nearly high enough to break the current record of over 1,300 costumed dogs, Scooby and I had a lovely day with friends old and new. For me, it was especially nice to just have fun after our recent slew of sad life happenings.
Instead of thinking about all that, today we walked in the parade. We visited the Good Dog 2 Go food truck for dogs. We helped hand out Kennel Creek leashes.
And we sold the first of a new official Wayward Dogs product that happens to be perfect for people who love dogs and parties!
If you haven’t already seen the teaser photo of this product on the Wayward Dogs Facebook page, you can guess what it might be from this old blog post.
More details to come very soon!
Did you celebrate Cinco de Mayo with your dog?
Big thanks to everyone for your support over the past couple of weeks. It is good to receive kind and empathetic words when the days get dark.
DIY Duds for Your Dog
Even you can make your own dog clothes.
He has seen the DIY light.
Because I’m a sucker for upcycling and DIY, the rag bin at the recent Dogs on the Lawn event at the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art caught my eye.
I had read in the event schedule that one of the activities involved making shirts for your dog, but I didn’t know exactly what that meant.
I was thinking blank doggy tees and magic markers.
But the art students leading this activity were far more crafty than that!
They clearly had figured out what we have all known for a long time:
Dog apparel is expensive in the same way as women’s swimwear and lingerie. You pay a premium price for very little fabric because it’s cute.
$11 on clearance at Fab.com.
For the art students, a way around investing in a bunch of pre-made doggy shirts was to upcycle old fabric. Their rag bin consisted of various shapes, sizes and colors of well-worn and soft T-shirts.
Next to the bin were several patterns for cutting the cloth into no-sew, homemade doggy duds.
Because I didn’t have any of the wayward dogs with me and the event was winding down, I grabbed a yellow shirt sleeve that seemed big enough for an elderpin to squeeze into.
Then, I proceeded to the screen printing area.
Guests could choose one of several patterns and colors. There was a pretty cute outline of a dog with a heart design, but I chose something more representative of this particular day.
I picked a shuttlecock, a locally-understood symbol of the Nelson, which has a giant shuttlecock sculpture on the lawn.
A student helped me screen printed the piece of fabric for me and pinned it to a clothesline with everyone else’s so the ink could dry.
I was pleased with the result. But back at home, I realized quickly that even a stretched out T-shirt sleeve is a bit too snug for an elderpin.
Nevertheless, the project did not go to waste. It makes a very nice neck band for one Charlie “Chetty” Machete.
And the color suits him well, since he is undoubtedly a yellow dog.
Have you ever made your own dog clothes or done screen printing at home?
If you want to upcycle the scraps in your rag bin, check out this eHow article about making old dog clothes from things you have around the house.
To try your hand at DIY screen printing, try out this Instructable.
A Beautiful Day to Take Your Dog to the Museum
Don’t be fooled by that headline.
I did not take any of my dogs to the museum.
But on Saturday, a lot of Kansas City folks did – well, they went at least as far as the the museum lawn.
Dogs on the Lawn was a first time event hosted by the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art.
Festivities included paws-on art projects, DIY dog apparel decoration and a few pet-friendly vendors including Kansas City’s brand new food truck for dogs.
People with dogs got to participate in paw painting – finger painting for dogs. The results were very colorful and abstract, but all the pet parents seemed proud.
Those interested in more serious art inspired by their animals could order a custom portrait from Ashley Corbello, a local artist who specializes in pet paintings.
Boston Terrier painting by Ashley Corbello
I decided I would like Ashley to immortalize Scooby the elderpin in a painting sometime soon.
But in the meantime, I headed to the DIY screen print area, where local art students were helping folks customize cloth accessories for their pets.
With the yellow dog project in mind, I chose a fabric scrap that I thought might work as a t-shirt for Scooby.
For decoration, I chose the shuttlecock, which is a nod to the famous sculpture that lives on the Nelson-Atkins lawn.
The real reason I came to Dogs on the Lawn, however, was to play with the puppies help at the Midwest Adopt-a-Bull table.
The group currently has five adorable pit mix puppies available for adoption. Three of them attended this event, along with their mama and another adoptable adult male.
The puppies were such a big hit that by the time I got to the event, they were pretty much crashed out. (I picked them all up and snuggled them to my chest, anyway.)
Two of five pit bull mix puppies now available for adoption.
The coolest thing I discovered at Dogs on the Lawn was Kansas City’s first food truck for dogs.
Good Dog 2 Go serves homemade, grain-free treats (which the puppies loved) and Bowser Beer, a non-alcoholic beverage for dogs that is made on the West coast.
I grabbed a bottle for the boys at home!
Come back tomorrow to see how they liked the brew!
Although we missed each other, Our Waldo Bungie’s Emily and adoptable Moby the Wonderdog also attended Dogs on the Lawn. Check out the post here.
Ouch!
If porcupines were tree branches, they would look like this.
Long-haired Luke picked this up in his golden tailfeathers last night during our jog along the Trolley Track Trail.
He squatted down to do his business, and when he stood up, this foot-and-a-half-long weapon was swinging from the underside of his tail. Because his fur kept him safe from the thorns, he seemed more confused than anything – like a cat with a string tied to its tail.
Never have I more wished to be carrying a pocket knife on an outing.
However, instead of cutting around the evil entanglement, I spent ten bare-handed minutes, gingerly tugging strands of hair away from the sticky, hair-like thorns, many of which lodged themselves in my skin throughout the process.
Charlie Machete seemed to be laughing at us all the while.
Oh well, it was an adventure!
According to the Missouri Department of Conservation, several thorny varieties of deciduous trees grow in Missouri. I think our spiky branch was new growth from a black or honey locust that fell off due to the recent snowstorms.
Many honey locusts grow along the part of the trail we were on. They have a terrifying appearance, their own branches wrapping around the trunk like wooden barb wire.
What hazards must you watch out for on your outings?
Happy Ending: Dusty Rhodes
“I’ve wined and dined with kings and queens and slept in alleys eating pork and beans.”- Dusty Rhodes
Remember that sad, little shepherd mix my friends found recently on the hard streets of Kansas City?
Well, he’s doing much better now.
In fact, you might say little Dusty Rhodes, named for a pro wrestler, is living “The American Dream.”
Because my friends were able to get around a dog weight restriction at their apartment, Dusty Rhodes came home with them.
He now has a mom, a dad and a tiny beagle sister named Daphne.
No more sleeping at the park for this guy!
Congratulations, Dusty!
Unfortunately, the list of dogs in need is neverending.
Another friend found an equally adorable shepherd mix with no collar, tags or microchip around 73rd and Harrison streets in the Waldo neighborhood of Kansas City yesterday.
Please share her photo if you have Kansas City contacts so that we may track down an owner before the dog is turned over to animal control.
Do you recognize me?
From the Streets to the Shelter
What would you do if you found this at your neighborhood park?
Fortunately for this little shepherd mix, when my friends stumbled across him a few days ago they did more than hurry past and try to forget about the sad sight.
They contacted animal control.
That’s not always an easy call to make. The shelter in Kansas City, Missouri, is not in good condition, and although euthanasia rates are down, not every animal makes it out of there alive.
For these reasons, my friends weren’t thrilled to send the pup to the city pound, but they weren’t in a position to tend to his immediate needs.
They did the right thing.
And again, they did not simply turn their backs when the truck drove off with the stray animal.
They recognized that to survive the shelter, this dog would need allies on the outside.
So, they shared his picture and story on social networks and lost pet forums.
They called up the shelter to see how he was doing.
They even went to visit him.
My friends would really like to adopt this dog, but at 45 pounds he is slightly too large for the rules set by their apartment complex.
They say he seems to be friendly and sweet, and the shelter estimates he is between 6 months and 1 year old.
Today, he is officially available for adoption from KC Pet Project. His identification number is 19425723.
Please share this dog’s story with anyone you know who may be interested in adopting him.
What do you do when you find a wayward dog?
Read more about the experience of finding this dog at ginchy!
How I Spent My Spring Break Staycation
Today, I clock back in at the office after a whole week off.
As much as I love my colleagues and enjoy my job, leaving Zach and the dogs at home is going to be extra hard this morning.
Our first “vacation” of 2013 did not involve a plane ride to the Pacific Northwest or even a bike ride through Missouri’s wine country.
But the time spent together, in our own city and with our beloved dogs was pretty amazing.
Staycation 2013 highlights:
1. Replenishing our supply of homemade, non-toxic household products, including DIY laundry detergent, dryer sheets, dishwasher detergent and citrus-scented all-purpose cleaner.
2. Warming ourselves by the fire of tree branches and twigs that fell down during Kansas City’s recent big, bad snowstorms.
3. Taking time to explore Red X, a big store in Riverside, Missouri, that is part hardware store, part grocery store, part liquor store and part purveyor of antiques and weird animal statues.
4. Having Zach’s sister and brothers over for dinner and taking an extra plate to our neighbor, who brought us a lovely bouquet of flowers to say thanks.
5. Challenging one another to consume the super hot sauce and dried pepper flakes that Bethany brought us from her trip to the Philippines.
6. Going to a movie – Oz the Great and Powerful – on a weeknight.
7. Getting into the St. Patrick’s Day spirit over Irish eats and a Bloody Molly drink at neighborhood dive bar Swagger.
Have you ever stayed home for your vacation? What did you do?
Festive Nostalgia
Better get your green out, it’s almost St. Patrick’s Day.
Dr. Minerva
Last year on the Saturday before the leprechaun’s favorite holiday, Minnie the husky mix accompanied me in a parade through the Brookside neighborhood of Kansas City.
Emily from Our Waldo Bungie was there, too, with her foster-dog-of-the-moment Lucy.
The lovely Lucy Liu
I remember the day very clearly. The sun was bright, and the air was warm.
Minnie was wearing a green t-shirt, but we soon had to strip that off to keep her cool and comfortable.
Lucy Liu got lots of looks thanks to her festive green skirt, in which she strutted for the whole parade.
It’s hard to believe that a whole year has passed.
Both of these sweet dogs have now been in their forever homes for several months.
The pre-St. Patrick’s Day parade is happening without us all this year, in just a few hours.
However, I will definitely break out that green bandana Minnie wore to help Luke or Charlie Machete get festive sometime this weekend.
