A Sad Announcement

To all our readers, please know that we are trying hard to get back into "the swing of things" and keep up the blog and such, but you have no idea how very hard it is at this time.

For those of you who didn't know, our beloved Mini Pinscher, Lance, died last week from kidney failure. We had spent the weekend vacationing on the beach and noticed that he just wanted to cuddle the whole time instead of exploring like he usually does. So we packed up early and took him home to our vet. We were shocked to hear that his kidneys were shutting down then. There had been so many health scares with our two elderly dogs, Jay and Mia, that we never even considered losing Lance. His condition deterioriated rapidly, and two days later he was gone. He was such a good little dog, and we miss him terribly. I'm going to go have (another) cry now, but I just wanted to say thank you to all of you who have eMailed us with your love and condolences. It means a lot to us.

Free Dog T-Shirt from Pedigree

Pedigree dog foods are well-known for donating a portion of every sale to help homeless dogs,
and now they're offering a nifty "Dogs Rule" T-shirt to pet owners!

http://www.pedigree.com/dogadoption/freetshirt.asp

It's a mail-in offer, and it does require some UPC codes for proof-of-purchase, but shipping and the shirt itself are free. The UPC requirements apply to their dog treats as well, for those who do not use their foods.

Your Trash Can Help Save a Dog's Life

Save your old empty ink jet and laser printer cartriages and they can be recycled to earn cash that can save an animal's life. Noah's Wish is an animal welfare organization that goes to great lengths to keep animals alive during major disasters, but they do need our help to ensure their ongoing efforts.

While cash donations are always appreciated, this recycling program is one of the ways that everyone can help, no matter what the family budget looks like.
Donaters don't even have to pay for postage, as a free UPS shipping label for the cartriages and phones will be provided.
To learn more about the program, visit the Ink Cartriage Program page.

While you're on the site you may want to look around and read about some of the amazing things that Noah's Wish has done to aid animals involved in some of our country's worst disasters, including Hurricane Katrina and the more recent Merced California flood.

How did you name your dog?

I ran across a 'Net post the other day about someone who had bet $20 on the Kentucky Derby one year and, after winning the bet (on a long shot), they used the money to buy a dog... Thus they named it "Derby".
Then, a couple of days later I met a woman in PetsMart who had an Peekapoo puppy, which she called "Pikachu." She said her kids were crazy about the cartoon and she liked the way the names rhymed.
In our business we run across a huge variety of dog names, but these two really tweaked my curiosity about how other owners name their pups.

For us, Jay, Lance, and Princess Francis were all named by their previous owners and/or rescue center (though we do refer to Princess as "Hurricane Francis" from time to time!), and we didn't want to confuse them by changing their names. Mia didn't respond to any name when we got her from her abused situation, and we literally spent 2 days calling out female dog and human names to her until we found one that made her wag... she chose her own name.

So how did your dog get his or her name?

A Kid & Dog-Related Rant

Ok, none of us here are generally prone to rants, but this was just too much. Yesterday we had a strange young man come to our backyard fence and begin smacking it with a stick, teasing and barking at our youngest Boxer, Francis. When she went towards the fence, he starting poking the stick through it, trying to hit her. The weirdest part (besides the fact that he was bold enough to come into the yard like that), was that we were sitting right there on the patio! I told him to knock it off and go home, and his reply was basically something you can't repeat on family-oriented websites. He did leave though (after telling us he'll mess with our dogs any time he pleases), so I just chalked it up to poor parenting and kid stupidity.
Then he came back today.
I put Francis in the house as soon as he started his routine, so he then chose to ride his bike back and forth on the road yelling cuss words and "where's your dog, lady?"
I don't know what the kid's malfunction is, but this is a really quiet neighborhood where anything unusual attracts a lot of attention, so the next door neighbor called the sheriff out. He took the kid (who turned out to be 14 years old!) home in handcuffs, and told us that if he came back they would arrest him for tresspassing, harrassment, and a few other things if we would press charges. You bet your britches I will!
I'm truly boggled at why a kid of that age would think such a thing was amusing, and even further boggled by what sort of parents raised a kid to act so rotten!
And folks say that *Dogs* should be on leashes? Hmmm..

A Quick Thank You...

Kyle, thanks a bunch for all your help in restoring the blog! {{{hugs}}}

Dog Blog Mess

Ok, if you come to the blog and it looks crazy (weird colors, fonts, etc.) then it's not your computer or anything. We just changed blog software versions and we're having some problems getting the old template to work correctly. We're also trying a few new things. Do any of our readers happen to be a blog template guru?

Winter Care Tips for Outdoor Dogs

Here are some tips to help you keep your outdoor dog safe:

1. Provide them with a good dog house, one that is as watertight and wind-proof as possible. Hang a heavy rug or piece of carpet over the doorway to help block wind, and try to place the dog house where it can get sun during the day. Ideally, their house should have a raised floor, but if not then try to provide some sort of a buffer between them and the cold ground. A thick bed of straw is a good idea in any dog house--- it is very inexpensive, and quite easy to sweep out and throw away as needed.

2. If you keep your dog in a garage or shed, be aware that though such buildings give them good protection from the elements, they will not neccessarily keep your dog as warm as they need to be. Large spaces won't heat up with the dog's body temperature like a well-fitted dog house does, so be sure to provide them with a "cubby" space in the shelter so they can climb in and get warm.

3. Check their water bowl often. If it ices over, run hot water in it to break the ice free and then refill it with *cold* water (cold water freezes slower than hot water). Don't believe that eating snow or licking the ice chunk in their bowl will save them from dehydration.

4. Feed them a couple of times a day (if you normally feed only once, just split the portions in two), and consider adding some warm water to it. Eating raises body temperature slightly, and a warm meal can go a long way in keeping your dog comfortable.

5. Check your dog's paws frequently for signs of frost bite.

6. Keep your dog as dry as possible. Big dogs especially seem to like to play in the snow, but do try to towel them off and keep them as dry as possible before bedding down at night.

7. If you know the temperatures are going to drop below freezing, do try to find a way to bring them indoors.

National Pet Dental Month

Though it can be difficult to clean your dog's teeth, it is a highly important part of dog ownership that many people tend to ignore. February is National Pet Dental Month, a time for all of us to educate ourselves and begin an oral care regimen that will benefit your dog's health for many years to come. To help get you started, the makers of Greenies dog treats is offering a free care package that includes a $20 rebate for a teeth cleaning at your vet's office. Their site also offers some very useful information about pet oral care. You can visit them here: Chews to Care.

PetDental.com also has some very useful information, as well as a kid's section to get them involved too.

Last but certainly not least, the folks at the Dog Breed Info center have a step-by-step guide, complete with pictures, to show you how to clean your dog's teeth.

Little Dogs and Garden Ponds

We had an interesting experience last week that could have turned out badly, and I thought it may be a good idea to share with other dog owners (especially those with very small dogs). We've always wanted a small fountain at the end of our patio so, finally getting a spell of really nice weather, we went ahead and installed one. We used one of those black pre-made plastic pond forms that you bury in the ground and then fill (like you see in the garden centers of most hardware stores), and the one we selected is only a couple of feet wide and maybe a foot deep. It seemed harmless enough, but the morning after we had it filled, our littlest Mini Pinscher fell into it.

We're not even sure why she went near it, since she has no great fondness for water, but nevertheless she did. I scooped her out immediately, and there was no harm done, but it occurred to me then how dangerous even the smallest ponds could be. Though the water isn't even high enough to reach my knees, it's well over her little head. Even worse, most pond forms are very smooth inside (which doesn't allow for traction) and the sides are almost vertical. There would have been no way she would have been ok if she had been outside without supervision. We immediately put a very stout decorative fence around said pond, even though the dogs don't go out alone!

Now I'm sure a some of you are out there reading this and saying "duh!", but when you have a dog that dislikes water and a pond that's just about as shallow as they get, it's easy to feel safe. I post this as a warning to others who have tiny dogs or puppies though... be careful of with your water decorations. Even some of the kiddie swimming pools that are on the market today are deeper that a little dog could handle, and they can apparently pick the oddest times to get curious!

Pegetable Dog Treats Review

Awhile back we sent away for some free samples of dog treats from the Pegetable company, and ours arrived here yesterday. If you are not familiar with them, Pegetables are edible chews, similar to Greenies. With so many dogs, we are always trying new treats, and these impressed me right away. I noticed that they were a tad bit softer than other edible chews that we had gotten before and, with a quick zap in the microwave, we were able to soften one of the chews in order to cut it in half for our Mini Pinschers.
The company had sent the celery flavored treats, which I had my doubts as to whether our dogs would go for or not, but all four pups took to them immediately. We never give our dogs chew bones without supervision, and as we watched them with the Pegetables it was amazing how the treats were tough enough for the large dogs not to gobble down, yet soft enough that the tiny dogs weren't having any trouble at all with them. What few pieces broke off during the chewing were quite small and somewhat flaky, and when I picked one up I noticed that it was fairly soft compared to other brands--- thus eliminating any worries about them choking on a piece. Best of all, these treats were really clean. No stains, no greasy mess, NOTHING on the carpeting when the feasting was done!
Our dogs really loved these, and I am definitely going let them try the other flavors that are available.

10 Naughty Dog New Year's Resolutions

Well, we've interviewed the naughtiest of naughty dogs this year to bring you the top ten bad dog New Year's resolutions:

#10. Learn to open the biscuit box
#9. Practice my howling more
#8. Keep the mail guy out of the yard
#7. Find more hiding places for my toys
#6. Teach that bad soccer ball not to run away
#5. Help mom lose weight by snitching her food
#4. Finish digging the hole under the fence
#3. Catch the Evil Squirrel
#2. Rescue the squeeky thing that's stuck in my toy
#1. Poo in the neighbor's yard so ours stays clean

We're Back

Hello fellow dog bloggers. It's been quite awhile since there's been a post here, but a lot has happened in that time. Puppycoat Junction has undergone a complete re-structuring, and we have added and dropped many brands in the proccess. As a matter of fact, we are still adding some of the new things, so the website is changing almost daily.

More importantly though, two of our dogs have had some serious medical problems in the past few months, and we are spending every spare moment with them. One morning in late October we noticed that Jay (the eldest Boxer) was extremely lethargic, and we couldn't get him to eat anything. Since we have dealt with spinal problems with him (which makes him lethargic) and bladder stones (which makes him lethargic AND not eat), we just assumed that he was having a flare-up of one of those problems and calmly scheduled a veterinary appointment. But the following morning he had a high fever and was noticibly dehydrated... and we all panicked! It took two veterinarians and a whole slew of tests to pinpoint the problem, which turned out to be a severe prostrate infection. I'm still boggled as to how it could have gotten that bad without him showing any signs earlier, and at how quickly he went down. He didn't respond well to the first few antibiotics, and it was late November/early December before he started acting like himself again. Now he's severely underweight. If any of you have any suggestions for anything that might put weight on this guy (low sodium and no dairy), PLEASE let us know. We've tried all the top brands of store-bought dog foods, a prescription-only dog food, and now I'm cooking human foods for him and nothing's working. It makes you want to cry to look at him, because every rib and bone in his body sticks out, but we can't think of anything else to try. The vet says he's fine, but that he's just "old" (as if we didn't know that!!).

A couple of weeks after the ordeal began with Jay, Mia (the eldest Min Pin) stopped responding to her heart medications and her lungs began to fill with fluid. Luckily, we caught this *very* early, and the vet was able to adjust her meds accordingly. We have to watch her activities and her diet very closely now, and we have been warned that her age is working against her too.

Both dogs are on quite a few meds daily, and we have learned an interesting thing about doggie meds that may be useful for some of you. Many of these drugs are the same medications that humans take, and the prescriptions for most can be filled at your local Walgreens or Walmart for a fraction of the cost of getting them from the veterinarian's office (we pay less than half price for Mia's & Jay's at the drug store). This may not hold true for everyone everywhere, but it's sure helped us with our pup's needs!

Your Dog on a Postage Stamp!

We found this website that lets you order valid U.S. postage stamps with your own photos on them! Our first thought was to order some with our dogs on them (in their best dog clothes, of course!), and we thought other pet owners might be interested too. You can check it out here:
www.photo.stamps.com

Adopt A Dog Month

Hi! My name's Lance, and I just wanted to pop in and let you know that the American Humane Association had named October to be annual "Adopt-A-Dog Month" in order to draw attention to the numerous homeless dogs waiting to be adopted. Since I'm a rescued pup myself, I can tell you that it's no fun living in a shelter, and I waited every day for someone to give me a home. I'm very lucky to have been chosen, because too many other dogs are never adopted and a lot of them are put to sleep as the shelters get too full. So if there's any room in your heart and your home, why not take the time now to visit your local shelter and give one of my four-legged peers a family of their own?
Petfinder can also help you find a dog in your area that is right for you.

New Dog Shirts section

Due to several requests that we had for an easier way to navigate our website's Dog Shirts section, we have now broken it down into subcatagories and separated the boy's dog shirts from the girls'. We think that this new method works quite nicely and want to thank the customers who suggested it.

Send Free Doggie e-Cards

We’ve found a website that offers a huge variety of free online greeting cards with terrific dog pictures on them! They even have an option where you can upload a photo of your own dog to send a truly personalized greeting card.
You can check them out here: DogBreedz.com

Dog Dresses product update

Our fall fashions are starting to arrive, and there will be many additions within the next couple of weeks. Currently we have updated the dog dresses category with some terrific new styles. Many of our summer dog dresses now have reduced pricing, and are available in limited quantities.

Pet Memorial

Today is National Pet Memorial Day, established by the International Association of Pet Cemeteries as a special day meant for dog owners to honor their lost pets. People do this in many different ways, including having small memorial services, creating memorial scrapbooks of their pet, creating living memorials by planting a tree in their pet's name, or simply discussing the happy times they had with their pet.

We at Puppycoat Junction lost two beloved dogs in less than a year's time, and would like to to honor their memories by writing a little bit about them.

This is Taz, a beautiful elderly Pug whose lovable antics made everyone he met like him. When he wanted to play, he had a funny way of bugging out his big round eyes and flapping his curly tail that made everyone laugh. He loved to go for long walks, and investigated anything new with a funny little "oink oink oink" snort. He liked to give happy "puggy kisses' to you when you were petting him, and he was always ready to cuddle. To know Taz was to love him.
He died at the age of 10 in August of 2004, just one day before we had to leave for our move to Florida. It was doubly hard to get into the car and drive away, knowing that one member of our canine family was not with us.

This is Twister, our lovable giant Rottweiler. Weighing in at close to 130 pounds by the time he was three, his size intimidated most people until they had the chance to know him. Twister was everyone's friend; a big happy teddy bear. He especially loved kids, and was always extra careful when playing with them. His absolute favorite thing was to play in the water, particularly the lawn sprinkler. He would hop and flip and try to catch as much water as he could before it hit the ground. He never realized how big he was, and always wanted to sit on your lap. Twister was highly intelligent, very well-trained, and taught a lot of people that Rottweilers are not always something to fear.
He died in June of 2005, during his second battle with canine cancer. He was only 4 years old.

Both were wonderful friends, and we will always love and miss them.

Do You Know Dogs?

If you're sniffin' around the 'Net looking for something to do, why not check out this cool Dog Breed Quiz.
We enjoyed it quite a bit, and were really suprised by some of the answers.