Lucky is a schnauzer owned by my cousin, Don Franklin, who lives at Grand Lake in New Brunswick and visited my four dogs and six cats while Don got a blister riding a mule down to the bottom of the Grand Canyon and back. Lucky's hobbies are kissing people, chewing flamingos and chasing cats.

Princess

Princess crossed the Rainbow Bridge today on my birthday... she was the last of my Bichon Frises... I did have six at one time. Her mother, Lucy was 18 and died a few weeks ago... I'd kept three of her pups from the one time I bred her and Princess was the last at 14. She had a good life but I'm sad.

Zoo's still here

Well, I now have five dogs and six cats... I only have one Bichon Frise left in the family... Princess and she's 14... her sister, Desi, still lives with my good friend, Petchy in Santa Fe but her mother Lucy, brother Spuds, sister Orchid and Uncle Ricky have all crossed the Rainbow Bridge. I have Katrina, the deaf Maltese, Punkin, a Maltese who was left outside all the time but is the greatest pet now and very attached to me as additions to Woody and Li'l Herman and Princess... on the cat side, I have three Persians still... Silver, Cleo and Pinkie and Bella, the Himalayan and two Tuxedo cats just over a year old named Thelma and Louise... or Weezy as I like to call her... if I can figure out how to upload pictures to this new-fangled Google blog, I'll do so... I also have a whole bunch of koi and goldfish in an outdoor pond and they come running to be fed.

New Cat

My latest addition... a three-year-old Persian... believe it or not, she's white right now with a pinkish tinge around her neck which makes her look like a clown... this picture was taken when they'd just pinked her up with Cherry Kool-Aid mixed with the Cream Rinse when they gave her a bath and it lasts for months... she came with the name "Fluffy" but I think I'll call her "Pinkie" in honor of Pinkie Lee... however, that could change... right now, she's hiding somewhere in the store while she gets her bearings...

Am I Famous Now?

Am I Famous Now? ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ I was born today. One of 10. My daddy was very famous. I have lots of half brothers and sisters. My mother is very famous. Since she got famous, she has only had puppies. No more loving hands, no more fun trips -- just puppies. She is always sad when they leave her. I left home today. I didn't want to go, so I hid behind my mama and my three littermates that were left. I didn't like you. But one day they said I would be famous. I wonder; is famous the same as fun and good times? So you picked me up and carried me away, even though you were concerned about me hiding from you. I don't think you liked me. My new home is far away. I am scared and afraid. My heart says BE BRAVE. My ancestors were. Did they go to good homes like mine? I'm hungry because I can't eat too much because it will be bad for my bones. I can't bite or snap when the children are mean to me. I just run and play and pretend I am in a big green field with butterflies and robins and frogs. I can't understand why they kick me. I am quiet, but the man hits and says loud things. The lady doesn't feed me good things like I had with my mother. She just throws dry food on the ground, then goes away before I can get too close for touching and petting. Sometimes my food smells bad but I eat it anyway. Today I had 10 puppies. They are so wonderful and warm. Am I famous now? I wish I could play with them but they are so tiny. I am so young and playful that it is hard to lay here in this hole under the house nursing my puppies. They are crying now. I am so hungry. I scratch and worry my fur. I wish someone would throw me some food. I am also very thirsty. I now have eight puppies. Two got cold during the night and I couldn't make them warm again. They are gone. We are all very weak. Maybe if I take them out on the porch, we can get some food. Today they took us away. It was too much trouble to feed us and someone came to take us away. Someone grabbed my puppies. They were crying and whimpering. We were put in a truck with boxes in it. Are my babies famous now? I hope so, because I miss them. They are gone. The place smelled of urine, fear and sickness. Why was I here? I was beautiful like my ancestors. Now I am hungry, dirty, in pain and unwanted. Maybe the worst is unwanted. No one came though I tried to be good. Today someone came. They put a rope on my neck and led me to a room that was very clean and had a shiny table. They put me on the table. Someone held me and hugged me. It felt so good! Then I felt tired and laid over the arm of the last one who cared. I AM FAMOUS NOW. Today someone cared.

Snowball Crosses The Rainbow Bridge

I couldn't find Snowball all day long and this afternoon, I found her drowned in the fish pond... a palm leaf had been covering her body.  Needless to say, I'm sad about her going this way... yes, she was arthritic and old but still got around with her Rimadyl which I just got filled last week when she and my other three Bichons had their Rabies shots.  She was nine when I rescued her... her owner had died and she was going to be put to sleep... it will be seven years ago this Thanksgiving...  I'll miss her hobbling up her steps to the bed... she always slept on the left side of the bed right up against the headboard and would come over for scratching and petting when she felt the need for it...

Thanksgiving

I have a turkey thawing so I can celebrate the Canadian Thanksgiving as well... it was windy here today but warm... I had to turn on the A/C in the store... I'm SO glad I'm out of snow and cold... I re-named my male Maltese Woody today as he reminds me of Woody Woodpecker. Katrina was spayed yesterday and that's quietened her down temporarily. Cleo, the black cat from Hell, is going to have to go back to the shelter as she's got a real mean streak in her and I'm afraid she'll scratch some kid in the store and I'll get sued... she turns on a dime from being a sweetie to a demon. It's a shame as I HATE taking her back there. My mother will be coming in just about a month and she's going to freak when she sees I have eight dogs now! And two cats after Cleo leaves... but I did get rid of the fish... well, inside anyway as we needed the space for more shelves for stamps but I have fish outside in the pond still.

Sugar has developed this dementia where she insists on sleeping in the store at night and I can't figure out why. Herman and Woody are wrestling a lot. Woody likes to stick his tongue right in my mouth and persists even when I turn my head.

Haircuts for all today

My Coton Li'l Herman got his first haircut today and is looking very sleek... I decided there was no way that I could keep up with the constant brushing needed to keep him long haired... I hated having to "torture" him. So he'll stay looking like the Bichons. I've named the deaf Maltese puppy Katrina and the groomers said I'd picked the perfect name for her... LOL She's a little dynamo chewing and digging and the house is strewn with the evidence as is our "office area" in the store. She's a ball of energy, terrorizes poor old arthritic Snowball and wears out Li'l Herman although they have fun playing Tug O' War with toys and chasing each other and wrestling.

Zoo Update

I don't know if I posted about the cat I got from the shelter here hiding for 10 days under my bed and then I got someone to get her out and we moved her to the store where I realized her nose and eyes were running so took her to the vet and got Clavamox antibiotic and nose drops for her... cleared up the cold in a few days but by then, my Persian cat was sneezing and then her nose started running although I didn't think they'd even had contact so I started her on the Clavamox and nose drops and now she's better but the Himalayan has sneezed a couple of times and so far, no runny eyes or nose... the last few days, Cleo (the shelter cat) has gone ballistic if you touched her sides and if you held her, she'd swipe at your nose and turn into a demon although she's extremely friendly and wants attention all the time... sits on the rubber buffet when people are there going through the rubber and follows customers around the store wanting to be petted... so I took her to the vet and of course, she didn't react at all when the vet manipulated her sides but she got a pain shot anyway so that was $68 on top of the $51 for the cold... my $13 cat has become very expensive... her name is Cleo now.

 

And my deaf Maltese got my newish glasses last night and bent the nose grip thingie and chewed a little on one lens so I have to go to Lenscrafters tomorrow and get that taken care of... I hope they don't charge me for it but they probably will.  It's a good thing she's so cute... she has paper torn up EVERYWHERE and the place looks like a disaster area both here and in the store area where she's taken a liking to wrapping paper.  I need to get her spayed soon... maybe then she'll stop humping my arm and the other dogs.  LOL  She is like a cat and gets up on the table when I'm eating and as soon as I put her back down, she's right back up again.  Good thing it's only me eating there... she thinks everyone who comes in the store should hold her and pet her and carry her around ever since a woman did the first day she was in the store and she whines and cries when they don't... I hope she gets over that!  Li'l Herman will tolerate her playing with him for a while but he tires of it as she just goes and goes and goes.   The other dogs are so old, they can't be bothered and Lucy growls at her and Sugar barks at her when she tries to engage them in play... sometimes, when Li'l Herman and Mitzi are tearing around the house chasing each other, Sugar steps in and barks at them to tell them to settle down.  LOL  Bella has been lying low ever since Mitzi arrived but each day, she's more visible... Silver doesn't take any guff off her and comes up on the bed with the dogs and sleeps.  There are other great cats at the shelter but I'll never dare get another one there as they're all sick. It's a disgrace the way the place is run... typical government operation.  They don't know what animals they have or where they are...

Silver walking through the plants.

Silver's taking a dim view of the puppy's antics too!

Yet another look at Princess.

Princess doesn't look too happy about the new puppy...

How could anyone have kicked and abused this little cutie?

A side view of my new baby Maltese, Miss Scarlet.

Yet another bird's-eye-view of my new Maltese puppy rescue.

A little washed out but at least it's a face-on shot of my new baby.

And here's my Maltese puppy... since she's deaf, I can't get her to look at me for a good picture! And when she's suitably posed, I don't have my camera!

My new five-month old Maltese sitting in his chair at the table... she likes to get up on the table too... she's like a cat!

Here's a bird's eye view of my new Maltese puppy...

Lucy with her babies... about 12 years ago.

Li'l Herman at rest.

Li'l Herman's sitting on his chair at the table hoping dinner will be served soon.

Li'l Herman having a rest under a chair.

Animal Update

This little Maltese pup is the cutest thing in the world... I've named her Miss Scarlet. She plays with Herman and chews on my hands like all puppies do and is so inquisitive... checking out everything... she sees herself in the full length mirror and barks at herself and runs away... it's so hard to imagine that she's been kicked and abused and is deaf. I looked and looked under the bed and couldn't find Ebony so had someone younger and thinner come look and he found her and I tried to hold her but she didn't want to be held so he put her in the closet where the food and water and kitty litter are and she's disappeared again but at least I know she's okay and it will just take time... the Maltese thought he was being smart barking at Silver but learned that's not a smart thing to do... Kurt and his wife loved her to death when they were here cat rescuing. She's such a happy bouncy little thing.

New Maltese Puppy Arrives

I have the deaf Maltese puppy and she's a real sweetie... cute as can be!  The dogs have all sniffed her out... she's been abused and kicked... poor little thing.  She hasn't been spayed so I'll have to get that attended to.

Animals

I'm getting worried as I haven't seen Ebony since the day I brought her
home... she needs to eat and get water... I can't find her anywhere and
can't imagine she's hiding this long... I put tuna under my bed and it was
eaten but one of the other cats might have gone under and eaten it there...
Sugar (my rescued from the shelter dog) shows great interest under my bed
which is why I thought she might be there... today, there was a free Maltese
puppy with partial hearing loss advertised and I'm supposed to get her in a
couple of hours... I can't wait and sure hope she's half as sweet and cuddly
as Oliver was when I dogsat him... I still have a special place in my heart
for him and think of him a lot... but it wasn't meant to be... some other
lucky person will get to adopt him. How long can a cat stay in hiding?

A new addition to Stampo's Zoo

Survey Says....



Most popular name... Ebony!  I like it!  So thanks for all the suggestions
and well wishes... I haven't seen her since I brought her home but that's
usual for the first couple of days plus she was spayed on Wednesday so still
recovering... I think she's under my bed as Sugar has been keeping vigil
there and that's what she did when Bella was hiding out after her spaying...
so now I have six dogs and three cats BUT a maltipoo named Ruby is coming to
check out the living quarters tonight so she may be moving in as well if her
owner approves.  And I'm SO tempted by the offers of cockatiels that keep
coming up...

A new addition to Stampo's Zoo

Today, I went to the Lied Animal Shelter to try to find the white and apricot Persian I found on Petfinders... she wasn't there and no one knew what might have happened to her... they've moved the animals into huge tents out in the desert and you have to tramp forever to get to them after gong to the old place at the opposite end of where the animals are now... there were SO MANY cats in there and I wanted to adopt them all... when you come to their cage, they come out and reach out their paw and rub against the bars and put on their best behavior... or they stay curled up in their litter box as it's the only soft area in the place... they may have peed in their little cardboard french fry container of food. There was a big yellow Persian male who was extremely friendly and then a tiny black Persian female who wouldn't get out of her litter box where she was sleeping but I later found out it was because she'd just been spayed yesterday and no wonder... she was a sweetie and declawed both in front and back so I took her for just $13 as she was a county cat... a city cat would cost up to $150 which is ridiculous... I haven't named her yet... Herman has said hello to her but she's hiding now... Bella was quite surprised to see her and actually got down off her chair where she just lies looking pretty. I'm hoping she'll be a friendly cat after she recovers. Blackie?

New Cat on the Horizon?

 

I went on a wild goose chase for the white and apricot Persian today... the shelter told me he was at the Nellis Petsmart and I went all the way up there (saw the Walmart everyone meets at... it was in the same shopping center) and it wasn't there and never had been!  When I called the shelter, she said they had 300 cats and couldn't keep track of them all so it must be at the shelter so I'll try going there tomorrow... I had to take Herman to the vet for an ear cleaning so didn't have time... one of the cats had shit on the sofa and when I wiped it up, there was blood so I took the stool in and they're having it tested for parasites or colitis... sold me some expensive high fiber food that Ineed to feed them.  He suggested Nutro for the dogs which is what Kim had suggested too.  They were all groomed yesterday so are looking very beautiful now... the vet couldn't believe how great Li'l Herman looked compared with when he first saw him.  He's a real fluffball now and was so funny at the vets... wanted to play with every dog that came in.  He especially liked a little long haired dachshund so I might have to get him one of those to play with... he's torn all the stuffing out of his parrot which is his favorite plaything... I just have to say "Where's the parrot?" and he runs and gets it so we can play tug-of-war.  He's such a happy little guy.

Sugar's Pound Picture... she looks so scared and has grown a lot of hair since then... I don't know what she's mixed with... possibly a terrier of some kind. She's sweet as Sugar though and cuddles up to my back as close as she can get in bed. I've learned that the Animal Shelter calls ANY white dog a Standard Poodle Mix so I have no idea what she is... her face looked like a Bichon's which is what attracted me and she's a wonderful dog... I suppose she's a "Designer Dog" since that's what they seem to call all mixed breeds now! If anyone knows what she is, let me know... I've decided she's a cross between a Bichon and a Terrier of some kind.

Stampo with Silver and Li'l Herman at Viva Las Vegastamps!

Ricky's at the back, Snowball is in front of him, Lucy is lying beside Snowball and Sugar is on the left with her head turned away saying "No pictures please!".

This is how many Bichon Frises I hope to have someday!

Princess resting before leaving for a hard day's work at Viva Las Vegastamps!

Sugar says a dog's life is SO hard!

I find it relaxing to just stretch out on the chair...

Don't you think I have a pretty face with blue eyes and a blue nose? Have you ever seen a prettier Himalayan Cat?

This is how I spend my day... Silver sits on the chair at the other end of the table...

Princess's eyes are shining!

I have to clean myself all the time so I can be the prettiest one in the house.

This is my favorite chair and I love to sleep here all day long while Dad and the dogs are at work.

Is that a dog I see over there?

Aren't I the prettiest Himalayan you've ever seen? I think I'm a blue cream point but I'm not sure...

This posing is getting tiresome...

I wish Stampo would take the tags off my cushions even if there is a penalty punishable by law!

I don't catch mice... I just sit and look pretty!

Don't you love my blue eyes? My nose is blue too!

Okay, okay, I'll pose for a picture but there'd better be some tuna in it for me.

Bella's wondering if she's in Africa.

Bella washing her foot... foot in mouth I guess would be the proper term.

Bella's looking at all the dogs and wondering why there aren't more cats in the house.

Bella's wondering where her tuna is.

From the back, we have Sugar, Snowball and Herman... Herman's toy parrot is on the floor... having been thoroughly shaken!

Herman watching Bella to see what she's up to.

Herman looking up at Dad... he just had a bath yesterday and is feeling handsome.

Cat Spaying Ahead!

I have an appointment Friday to get both cats spayed. Bella is driving me crazy with her yowling... she's much louder than Silver was... I couldn't get an appointment at Lied Animal Shelter until the 21st but called the Humane Society and they got me one with an actual vet for the 15th and I'd rather do that than go to the shelter anyway with all the germs there! It's only $5 more... $40 instead of $35... the shelter charges another $20 if the cat is in heat so I hope by Friday, Bella stops yowling and Silver doesn't start if the animal hospital has the same policy! The trick will be for me to wake up early enough to take them... I was up at 6 this morning cutting rubber but then fell asleep again and didn't wake up until after 10 and Herman was sleeping right on top of my chest with his head snuggled under my chin... he ain't heavy, he's my doggie. He's such a wonderful dog... the light of my life... always ready for a cuddle or a rumble. He's so cheerful and happy all the time. Sugar's a sweetie too but she's a little devious... jealous of anyone else getting any attention... both of them like to sit on my big recliner chair in the store with me but Sugar is shy of strangers whereas Li'l Herman just barrels right up to them for petting.

Silver gets a Himalayan companion!

I picked up a two-year old female Himalyan tonight. She's beautiful... a champagne color and very gentle but hiding out somewhere... I introduced her to the closet and when I put in some tuna she was testing out the electronic kitty litter box. She has some mattes to be worked on but not as bad as Silver was. Her name is Isabella but I think I'll probably change that as Anna said she doesn't come to it anyway... I'm convinced cats only come to "Kitty". And then, of course, only when they want to... or when you are near the refrigerator where the tuna is kept.

Think I'll just get them both spayed although the woman tonight had seven of the cutest kittens that were two weeks old... she's bottle fed them since the time they were two days old and were found in a trunk. They had told her she'd be lucky if half of them lived and they all lived. They were mewing and running all over the table as soon as she opened the cage. She works at the SPCA and was at Petco doing dog adoptions yesterday and this woman brought this Himalayan cat up and said her boyfriend was allergic (the usual story) and Anna told her the SPCA is full of cats and can't take any more until some get adopted out and she should take her to Lied and she said she didn't know where Lied was nor Mojave and just dumped the cat there... funnily enough, the cat had got its shots at Lied! So she lied about Lied. I did find out that the SPCA has taken over the Dewey space when the county closed it and not all the dogs got sent to Death Row at Lied.

Orchid was one of Lucy's three pups that I kept... she went blind at seven years old and coped with it amazingly well... she got Cushing's Disease and then kidney failure and died in September 2003.

Snowball, Spuds, Ricky and Princess at Viva Las Vegastamps! Spuds died of a heart attack in May of 2005 and I was devastated as he was a person in a dog's coat... my Bichons have posed for many of the rubber stamps I sell on our Web Site at www.stampo.com/catalog Just type BICHON in the SEARCH box to bring up thumbnails of the pages they're on... and then click on the thumbnail to bring to full size. My dogs are with me 24/7... if the dogs can't go there, I don't go there!