Pick your favorite!

Just four dogs are in the running for September's dog of the month. But once again I am glad choosing the winner isn't up to me, because I think they are all deserving of the title and the prize! ($25 to PetSmart).

Review each of them below, and make your vote! Voting closes on September 1st!

 Who do you want to be September's dog of the month?

• 
  
  Olive


• 
  
  Lloyd


• 
  
  Mira Bella


• 
  
  Tully

view results
Free vote poll

Olive


Olive is a 10 month old Cane Corso owned by Auston and Molly Sligh! The Cane Corso is still relatively unknown, being one of the three newest breeds to be recognized by the AKC. Being rare also makes them hard to find. Olive was shipped to Washington from a breeder in Kentucky! Auston and Molly write about what made them choose a Cane Corso: "We both wanted a big, girl dog. Auston wanted something that looked scary, and I wanted a dog that looked like a pitbull, but without the stigma. Cane Corsos were the middle ground. She is lazy, loyal and snuggly. I can’t think of having anything else now, she’s perfect for us."


Lloyd


Lloyd is a Vizsla/Lab mix puppy owned by Kyle Crommett! Kyle rescued Lloyd from PAWS and writes that as soon as he saw him, he knew there was no way he was leaving without him! It sounds like a perfect match. "LLoyd is such an awesome dog. He is ridiculously smart. He was basically housebroken the first night I brought him home at just under 9 weeks, and he has picked up basic commands (Sit, Stay, Down) after literally just a few minutes on each command. He is very loyal, and pretty much spends the whole day attached to my leg. He'll wake up from a dead sleep just to follow me into the kitchen and pass back out on the floor at my feet while I cook."


Mira Bella


Mira Bella is a 5 year old Miniature Dachshund owned by Terri VonderHeide! Mira Bella is completely deaf, partially blind and was even paralyzed when Terri flew to New Orleans to rescue her from a neglected situation. Her name is truly fitting, Terri writes: "Her name was Honey when I rescued her but she is such a Miracle dog in so many ways and she is so beautiful both physically and in her spirit that Miracle got shortened to Mira and Bella for beautiful because she is my Beautiful Miracle."

I'm positive that if Mira Bella could talk, she would call Terri her miracle as well. Thanks to her determination and faith, Mira Bella is able to walk again despite the fact that vets told Terri there was no way she would. Mira Bella's example has saved 5 rescue dogs in the past year alone from being euthanized because of having back problems.

You can read all about Mira Bella's inspiring story by visiting her blog:

www.mirasmiracle.blogspot.com


Tully


Tully is a 3 year old Cairn Terrier owned by Jeff and Rachel Bundy! This was an impulse buy that really worked out. Rachel says "It was a compulsive purchase but I am so glad I got her. She is affectionate, devoted, and cute". She is also named after Julianne Moore's character in "The Forgotten", but she goes by a variety of awesome nicknames including Dinger, Trikemaster Tom, Smerf and Danger, pronounced Dang - Er.


The upside to having fewer contestants is it will make your decision easier. Then again...maybe not?

You are the best thing that's ever been mine

A few years ago I started collecting dog related quotes that I liked. Here are some of those quotes, along with some of my favorite dog photos I have saved overtime...(and do not own the rights to :)


"Only my dogs will not betray me."
~Maria Callas



"His ears were often the first thing to catch my tears."
~Elizabeth Barrett Browning, referring to her cocker spaniel, Flush



"… none are as fiercely loyal as dog people.
In return, no doubt, for the never-ending loyalty of dogs."
~Linda Shrieves




"If you get to thinking you're a person of some influence, try ordering somebody else's dog around."
~Will Rogers



"To sit with a dog on a hillside on a glorious afternoon is to be back in Eden, where doing nothing was not boring - it was peace."
~Milan Kundera



"We long for an affection altogether ignorant of our faults. Heaven has accorded this to us in the uncritical canine attachment"
~George Eliot



"We never really own a dog as much as he owns us."
~Gene Hill



"Old age means realizing you will never own all the dogs you wanted to."
~Joe Gores



"Until one has loved an animal, a part of one's soul remains unawakened."
~Anatole France



"A person who has never owned a dog has missed a wonderful part of life"
~Bob Barker


"Old men miss many dogs."
~Steve Allen



"Dogs' lives are too short. Their only fault, really."
~Agnes Sligh Turnbull





For the soul of every living thing is in the hand of God.
Job 12:10

Edging. To Put Dog Owners on Edge.

Remember when I mentioned how my dog Gabe is prone to accidents? Maybe I should've knocked on wood, because he got into some MORE trouble just a few months ago. (And if you do not recall, maybe this will refresh your memory.)

Here's what went down most recently.

I got to the end of another work week, woke up later than normal, and let Gabe outside before I did anything else. I left the back door open so he could come back inside when he was done. After being outside for literally 1-2 minutes, he did come back into the kitchen momentarily. Then, he wandered back outside on the deck. Shortly after, I noticed a spot of what appeared to be blood on the floor. I followed Gabe out to the deck and then saw that there were LOTS of spots of blood all over the place, and Gabe was vigorously licking one of his paws.

Some choice language flooded into my mind, and I stooped down to see what was causing the mess. His entire front left paw was pooling with blood between the pads. I could not stomach the thought of investigating it too closely (that is why I am a dog trainer, not a doctor), so we immediately went to the vet to have it assessed.



I had NO idea what could have caused such a gruesome gash in such a small amount of time, but upon arrival to the vet clinic, three different people asked us: 'Do you have any metal edging in your yard?' And come to find out, we do.

Tangent: At this time, I should probably mention that I didn't even know what edging WAS before this happened. When I heard what it is called, I pictured it to be somewhere on the fence. You know, on the edge of the yard. In all actuality, edging is the material that borders flower beds, gardens, etc. to prevent different landscaping materials from mixing. Just in case you live under a rock like I do and don't realize what edging is, this is what it looks like:




End tangent.

A few stitches later and armed with a batch of antibiotics and Rimadyl, Gabe was returned to me. He was lucky to not have cut any tendons in his foot. Come to find out, he was also lucky that the cut was between the pads of his foot, and not on the pad (because the pads are made up of dead skin, which is harder to grow back, go figure.) Nonetheless, Gabe had a long couple of weeks ahead of him. No walks. No unsupervised trips to the backyard. No being rowdy, or getting his foot wet. He also occasionally had to wear the dreaded CONE OF SHAME so he wouldn't eat his bandage off. (But we will spare him from being further embarassed on the internet by keeping the real pictures to ourselves.)



After weeks of watching Gabe like a hawk, bagging his foot every time we'd go outside in wet grass, un-bagging it every time we came in the house, excluding him from all outdoor adventures, making sure he got his pills twice a day, and watching him pitifully hobble, I was ready to tear the edging out of the yard with my bare hands. One small piece of metal had a huge impact on my lifestyle, peace of mind, and bank account.

Dad went to Home Depot to buy some type of guard for the top of the edging. As it turns out, they don't even sell metal edging any more, because of how common it is for people and animals to be cut by it! It was good news in one sense, but bad because he couldn't get any sort of protective covering for our edging any more. He ended up using duct tape to cover all jagged corners. (We also got the suggestion to cut a garden hose in half and use that to cover all of the edging.)

So, if you have metal edging in your yard, and your pets or kids ever play out there, I would highly recommend replacing it, or at least covering it. It might seem tedious or pointless, but it will spare you money and heartache in the long run.

Shiloh - Winner for August's Dog of the Month!

The votes are in! Congrats to Shiloh for winning Hot Diggity's first ever photo contest! Shiloh is crowned August's dog of the month and will be receiving a $25 gift card to PetSmart in the mail!

Shiloh is owned by Sarah Sandberg (also the photographer of this winning photo). Here is a little interview with her about this sweet little guy:

Dog's Breed: Double Dapple Dachshund ( tsk tsk I know )

Dog's Age: Approx 5 yrs

Where did you get your dog? Shiloh's story is slightly long and posted on my blog

What made you choose your dog? I believe he was chosen for me at a time in my life when my heart cat Tigger of 15+ years was passing on. He came to heal my soul.

How did you pick your dog's name? Shiloh means God's gift and he is certainly a gift to us. ( also explained within the blog posting )

Describe your dog in 3 words: Intelligent, Love & Perfection




Thank you to everyone who voted! You can start sending in your entries for September's contest.

To Enter:

Email us up to 5 photos of your dog along with the following info:

Owner's Name:
Photographer's Name:
Dog's Name:
Dog's Breed:
Dog's Age:
Where did you get your dog?
What made you choose your dog?
How did you pick your dog's name?
Describe your dog in 3 words:

Email All Entries to: TheHotDiggity@hotmail.com

There are no right or wrong answers to these questions. We just want a little info to include in the post that features your dog if he/she wins :)

Rules/Tips:

- Send all entries in by August 21st
- People are awesome. People in your dog picture entries are not quite as awesome. No people please!
- Pictures with more than one dog in them are fine. Just make sure to answer the questions for each dog (if they are all yours)
- The higher quality photo, the better! (Pixely or blurry shots won't look too cute supersized.)