WOW- BASKET RAFFLE FOR HEALTH CHALLENGE & RESCUE !!!

First of all....I want to THANK EACH AND EVERY ONE OF YOU for supporting this very important fund-raiser for our Newfoundlands.

Based on what I am seeing on the Rescue List not only for Newfs but for other breeds...the numbers of of dogs needing re-homed due to the economy ..well...it's GROWING astronomically and I doubt that there is any end in sight.

We feel badly for the families that have to face losing their jobs...their homes ...and very often they have to surrender a much loved family pet because they can barely afford to maintain themselves...let alone a pet.

Sad to say, I think, even with the most concerted efforts it is soon going to come to a point when even the MOST dedicated shelters and Rescues..organized as well as Individuals and Independents just cannot save them all....so in some small way...I truly have the belief that between ALL of us we can help a few more...and those few more dogs are going to be VERY appreciative of OUR collective efforts.

Also THANKS for all your prayers and good thoughts; we'd had some nasty weather last night but a safe trip to the Cardiologist and back...breakfast sucked but you can't win them all. Ron will be having a Thallium Stress Test the Monday after Christmas and this will confirm the validity of the Treadmill Test he'd had last month; he will also have another Echocardiogram and Lower Extremity ultrasound as he has some other complaints which could be cardiac vs sciatic vs diabetic so we should know a lot more after the Thallium test and where we need to go from there.

SO....YOU WANNA KNOW WHO THE WINNERS ARE ?????

First of all....
THANKS TO YOU.... THE FINAL TOTAL WAS.......

$ 2,050.00

WHICH MAKES EACH SHARE WORTH

$1,025.00

1227 Tickets were sold and the half-gallon jar I was using was plumb FULL so hubby had to reach into a pillow case to pull the winning ticket...was the ONLY way to make sure tickets were all mixed up properly.

THE BASKET WINNER IS.........MICHELLE SUMNER of Laguna Beach, CA

SO....Michelle.....you need to get back with me to let me know where to ship ALL your Goodies. the cookies will be shipped separately as I still have to bake the Grain Free ones...those are only done by Special Order and the base mixture is thawing out.

.......... NOW....YOU WANNA KNOW WHO THE WINNING RESCUE IS ????

WELL, DO YOU ??????

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THE RESCUE 50% CHECK GOES TO:

Newfoundland Health & Rescue of the Newfoundland Club of Northern California and it was a great pleasure to telephone Summer Poris with this news and to forward the envelope of checks to Mrs. June Gibson ( Rescue Chair ).

The Health Challenge Committee of the Newfoundland Club of America ( Mrs Kathy Paxton ) received the other $ 1,025.00 from you to further their involvement in medical research for health problems plaguing our Newfoundlands.

UPDATE: Our Basket Winner, Michelle Sumner has gracious donated the contents of the Basket back to Rescue so after the Holidays I will be splitting the contents up into 4 separate boxes and drawing the names of 4 Newfoundland Rescues and ship a box to each of them .

These Rescues will then have the option of using the contents for their own Rescue Intakes, using them in their Rescue Fund-raiser "Brown Bag Auctions" or in their baskets that each Club assembles and takes to the National Speciality for the Health Challenge Silent Auctions.

So...THANKS AGAIN to Michelle who has really shown the "Pay it Forward" aspect of these fund-raisers.

WOW- 50/50 RAFFLE UPDATE & New Prizes

Ya know...I am definitely going to have to find a BIGGER BOX ...because YES, there are still MORE Prizes now added to the Gift Collection for the 50/50 Basket Raffle for NCA Health Challenge and a Lucky rescue.

So....lets get to the Money Thing FIRST....

I always had a PERSONAL GOAL in mind, maybe some think it's Pie-In-The-SKY but, hey....but as the late great Tennessee Ernie Ford was famous for singing..." High Hopes" ....and high hopes I do indeed have because as you all know...EVERYTHING GOES TO THE DOGS !

My Personal Goal is $ 1,000.00...which would mean a Nice $500.00 check each for NCA Health Challenge and a Lucky rescue and wouldn't those make a lovely Holiday Gift...especially when it seems that more and more Newfs and other dogs are losing their homes and families due to the Economic Crisis. Rescues will tell you that they haven't yet seen the full impact of this and Rescues, both Club sponsored and Independent , are often bursting at the seams and sad to say...sometimes there just " ain't no room at the Inn" and often this is due to lack of funding as well as lack of qualified foster homes.

So....hang on folks...I am going to do a LOT of cheering on til the end of this Raffle in the High Hopes of hitting that Goal and maybe even beyond.

Current status of the Pot...thanks to a big surge in entries is: $ 610.00 ...less the PayPal bite of $ 23.36...leaving a NET of $ 586.64,
which means we are just over 60% towards that Goal. And there are still TWO weeks to go.....

Now for the added prizes:

Back to the wonderfully generous box from Tara Mc Grath...a very nice collection of Newfie photo frames, decals and Note Cards...THANKS SO MUCH TO TARA, JOSIE AND BUFFY......

What does the Best Dressed Newfoundland wear ??? Of course...a custom ordered Drool Bib with the ultimate order: DROOL'S THE RULE. This Bib is in deep Red so suitable for any slobbery Boy or Girl Newfie. Susan Putt makes these bibs and she made this one with a button closure as well as the fabric covered elastic band.

Next week will be the last Prize addition and one is such a TREASURE that I am not even going to tell you what it is....just that it is UNIQUE and GREAT......

Remember: Raffle Entries close 10 December 2008 and the Drawing for the Prize Collection as well as the Rescue will be on 11 December and announced that evening !

Tickets are $ 2.00 each or a block of 6 for $ 10.00. Each block of tickets lets you nominate a Rescue for an additional Ticket to for the Rescue Check drawing. PayPal entries can be done at: landlubbernewf@yahoo.com and you can do credit and debit cards. In the comment block make sure you add the Name of the Rescue you'd like to nominate for the Prize check.

I will also take checks and money orders for entries but these need to be postmarked by 4 December 2008 to make it here in time for me to assign and e-mail you your Raffle ticket numbers. If coming close to that deadline, please e-mail me here ( merrymutts@aol.com ) and give me a head's up so I can get your ticket numbers assigned.

You'll need to make out TWO checks: one made payable to NCA Health Challenge and one payable to ______ rescue so I can fill in the name of the winning Rescue when drawn. These checks will be placed in a marked envelope and included along with the main Prize checks written as soon as the PayPal funds are transferred into the checking account ( 3-4 business days usual ) .

Address for checks:

Susan Aspeotes
25510 Rocky Mount Lane
Waynesville MO 65583

Currently there are 29 Tickets in the rescue Jar and they are assigned as follows:

North Central Newfoundland Club - 1 Newfoundland Club of New England - 3
NEWF-FLA - 2 Bear Mountain Newfoundland Club - 2
Southeastern Newfoundland Club - 3 Autumn Acres - 7
New-Pen-Del - 2 NCA Rescue - 2
Old West Newfoundland Club - 3 South Central Newfoundland Club - 1
Penn-Ohio Newfoundland Club - 1 Newf Rescue NWFD - 1
Newfoundland Club of Seattle - 1

OK....I did my Cheer last night and I am going to do it again ! We still have some "Orphans"...Clubs which have not yet been nominated for a chance to win half of the Pot. Some have an Organized Rescue Program and some do NOT. However, just because a Club does NOT actually have an Organized Rescue does NOT mean that Newfs in their territory have been abandoned. Far from it...they are still monitored, picked up and fostered by Club members which means these Clubs are just as worthy of a chance to win that Prize Check...often all it takes is a little "seed money" to get them going again.

Unsponsored Clubs are:

Colonial Newfoundland Club - Genesee Region Newfoundland Club

Columbia River Newfoundland Club - Heart of America Newfoundland Club

Mesquite Newfoundland Club - Newfoundland Club of Hawaii

Newfoundland Club of Northern California - Newfoundland Club of San Diego

Northland Newfoundland Club - Newfoundland Club of Southern California

Northstar Newfoundland Club - High Country Newfoundland Club

Pacific Northwest Newfoundland Club - Niagara Frontier Newfoundland Club

Great Lakes Newfoundland Club

I also want to add another Great lady...Chris Pulver ...she does a LOT of Independent Newfoundland Rescue...most out of her own pocket...so in my humble opinion, she, too , deserves a chance for that Rescue Check !!!

That's a whole lot of NICE people dedicated to the Newfoundlands and I, for one, would not want to see these people not have a chance at that Prize check So, how 'bout it folks...buy a block of tickets, take a chance to win some GREAT prizes and let's get these Clubs in the jar for a chance to win that check !!!!

BASKET RAFFLE UPDATE

The 50/50 Basket Raffle benefiting NCA Health Challenge and Rescue is coming along GREAT and I am so grateful for all of your support.

There are several NEW prizes added this week:

Large Fleece Paw Print Blanket....nice and cuddly for your pets to rest on...or to protect your furniture when you want your pets to snuggle with you on your couch.

Have a cup of tea with Rachel Hale with this wonderful Newfie Tea cup set - donated by Tara McGrath. This is a unique and delightful addition to the Basket and is sure to make you smile as you sip your cup of tea.

Tara also donated a great Newfie Address/Telephone book...a great thing to have by your home phone and also to keep track of addresses for your upcoming Christmas Card lists.

Total raised so far is $ 440.00...deducting Pay Pal fees the NET stands at $ 422.02 so this means that with this week's entries we are inching ever closer towards the goal. My actual "personal" goal will be announced in two weeks time...and hopefully I can count further on your support to be able to send some BIG checks off to not only NCA Health Challenge but to ONE lucky Rescue to help further their cause for assisting in the care and re homing of Newfoundlands.

Tickets are $ 2.00 each or 6 for $ 10.00.

PayPal ( for debit and credit card entries ) address is:

landlubbernewf@yahoo.com

If you choose this option, please be sure to e-mail me at : merrymutts@aol.com to let me know which Rescue you would like to see win 1/2 of the total Pot. The more tickets a Rescue has in their separate container...the better their chances of winning.

If you wish to enter by check or money order, you'll need to write TWO checks....one made payable to NCA Health Challenge and the second with the word "Rescue" in the Pay to the Order of line...just please leave me enough room to write in the name of the winning Rescue Group. And, let me know the day you are sending your checks so I can issue your ticket numbers and e-mail them to you...again: merrymutts@aol.com and also let me know which Rescue to add to the drawing.

Raffle closes on 10 December 2008 with the drawing on 11 December 2008. The winner of the HUGE GIFT BASKET will need to respond as soon as possible so I can confirm a mailing address and get your prizes ready to send to you.

50/50 Raffle UPDATE

A BIG THANKS TO ALL WHO HAVE PARTICIPATED SO FAR.

REMEMBER: RAFFLE CLOSES DECEMBER 10, 2008

We have some terrific NEW additions to the Raffle Gift Box, which one lucky person will win...THE WHOLE SHOOTING MATCH. So, I can guarantee someone is going to have some VERY SPOILED FUR KIDS.

Thanks to Tara McGrath...who sent a HUGE Box of goodies to add to the Gift Box....FOUR of which I will name here....the rest will be added in as the weeks go by until the drawing.

IN THE COMPANY OF NEWFIES by Rhoda Lerman....this is an author SIGNED COPY.

This was one of my first Newf books and one of my most treasured...although mine is not signed.

REAL FOOD FOR DOGS - a Guide to Home Cooking for your Dogs.

THUNDER FROM THE SEA by Joan Hiatt Harlow

this is great book for older kids

NEAT SHEET - a nice protector for floors when grooming your dogs or also nice for a backyard picnic.

I, too, have some other goodies coming which are a surprise but right now, I can safely estimate that the TOTAL VALUE of this Gift Treasure Trove will end up being close to $ 400.00...if not MORE.

This a great way to add to your collection of Newfie goodies...with some to share and perhaps some to "PAY IT FORWARD" and donate to your regional Club or Local All-Breed Club's fund-raisers.

FULL DETAILS OF THE RAFFLE ARE LISTED IN THE POST BELOW....REMEMBER YOU HAVE UNTIL 10 DECEMBER 2008 FOR PAY PAL ENTRIES but Checks/Money orders need to be mailed by 4 December 2008 to ensure that they are received prior to the Raffle's end and can be included in the final disbursement of funds.

BIG HOLIDAY RAFFLE FOR NCA HEALTH CHALLENGE & NEWFOUNDLAND RESCUE

UPDATE TO CONTENTS OF BASKET:

Set of Hand-drawn Newfie notecards - donated by Cindy Williams (Pipeline Newfs )

2 bars of Celestial Sensations Doggie Bath Bar ( these are made by one of our local home
businesses and they smell terrific and are great on dog coats )

More coming ......

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Something a little different this year and I believe you all will enjoy it.

Here's your chance to help support NCA Health Challenge AND your favorite Newf Rescue...and win a HUGE Gift Basket for yourself and your beloved pets.

RAFFLE PROCEEDS WILL BE SPLIT WITH 50% OF THE TOTAL GOING TO BENEFIT HEALTH CHALLENGE AND THE REMAINING 50% TO A US OR CANADIAN NEWF RESCUE.

I wanted to add Canadian Groups to this because each Province's Rescue is totally self-sufficient and receives NO funding from the Canadian Newfoundland Club. If you nominate your Regional Club and it does not have an ACTIVE rescue program, then NCA Rescue would be the beneficiary if drawn as the winner.

As everyone knows, the current state of the economy has impacted many, many people....they're losing their jobs and homes; small businesses are closing every day it seems .. and all too often this also means that beloved pets are being surrendered to shelters and rescues because their families can no longer afford to care for them.

Newf rescue has been hit especially hard...just ask any of them...so spend a few $$$ and help those who cannot speak for themselves.

Partial List of the contents of the Gift Basket , with an estimated total value of almost $ 200.00 ... ( and could end up even more ?? ) just to whet you and your dog's fancy:

Trip Tails Auto Bag ( attached to seat of your vehicle to help keep Pup's Travel Goodies Organized )
Newfie Tie Tack/Pin ...choice of Black or Landseer
Paw Brothers Coarse Coat Raake ( similar to a Mars Coat King )
Large Plush Purple Man Stuffie
Large Plush Lamb Stuffie
Large Mallard Duck Stuffie
Large Dragon Stuffie
2009 Tessie Calendar ( Tessie is an NCNE Rescue loved by Alison Cole and she is QUITE the Model )
Large Embroidered Fleece Blanket
Christmas is Good by Trixie Koontz as told to Dean Koontz
12 oz bottle of Natural Espree Plum Perfect Shampoo (All-Natural Pesticide Free product )
20 oz bottle Tropiclean Papaya Plus Shampoo ( All Natural Coconut base product )
Large Chamois Bath Towel
Set of Arayo Notecards ( donated by Arayo's Mom, Karyn Carpenter )
1 yr Gift Subscription to Whole Dog Journal
4 Pounds of M & Zee's Treats ( 8 oz of each of the regular flavors and 8 oz Grain Free )

I will have MORE to add as the items get shipped in....but thought this list would get ya going.....and as you can see...there's lots for you....and for your dogs...and some for them to share with doggie friends.

Tickets are $ 2.00 each or 6 for $ 10.00 . PayPal is preferred...there's no way around the PayPal admin fees for this, sad to say...but it is a lot more SECURE and will allow you to use a Credit or a Debit card.

At the end of the raffle, the total will be electronically deposited into my account ( transaction takes 3-4 business days ) and at that time the checks will be issued along with a list of contributors for those of you needing a receipt for tax purposes.


The PayPal address is: landlubbernewf@yahoo.com

When you purchase your tickets please e-mail me ( merrymutts@aol.com ) with your nomination for the Rescue portion of the proceeds.

You will have your information (name, address, e-mail and nominated Rescue ) entered into my spreadsheet and I will e-mail you with your lucky ticket numbers.

Your Nominated Rescue will have a separate ticket issued and be listed in it's own database. Please...only ONE Rescue nomination per person per transaction..BUT you may purchasse tickets more than once...

You can buy tickets via PayPal up until the 10th of December...but if you are sending a checks/money orders...these will need to be mailed NLT 4 December so I get them in time to add you into the database and issue your ticket numbers.

A Rescue can have more than one ticket for the drawing, however.

Raffle begins 1 November 2008 and ends on 10 Dec 2008; winner will be announced on 11 December 2008 and I will e-mail the winner to confirm your shipping information. and YES...I will ship to Canada if that's where the winner resides.

I did one of these Basket Raffles some years ago for a Golden Retriever Rescue ; it went very smoothly and the Rescue received donations in excess of $ 2,400.00 ...the Goal was $ 1,000.00.

Those of you who remember the Health Challenge "Ultimate Bookshelf" raffle ( won by Gerry Haines ), that garnered over $ 1,800.00 for NCA Health Challenge so every little bit helps US help the Newfs.


Since there were so many people who'd asked about checks, here is how I believe it will best work out.

You'll need to write TWO checks/money orders...sounds like a pain but here's how I'll handle them.

I will have two envelopes...one made out to NCA Health Challenge with Mary Jane Spackman's mailing address and the Second will just be marked "Rescue".

One check should be made out to NCA Health Challenge and the other check should just state "Rescue" on the "Pay to the Order of.." line...just leave me enough space to write in the name of the winning Rescue Group.

Checks/money orders will then be logged in and placed in the appropriate envelope.

Ticket prices are $2.00 each...6 for $ 10.00...12 for $ 20.00 and so on...so if buying 12 tickets, for example, make one check out to Health Challenge for $ 10.00 and the other to "Rescue" for $ 10.00

When the winners are drawn and the PayPal funds are ready for disbursement...your checks will be included in the same envelope with the ones that I write and the list of all donors.

So, for those needing a receipt for tax purposes...your canceled check/money order copy should qualify as your receipt.

Since the Raffle will end on December 10th, the Pay Pal transfer should be completed by 16-17th and checks will be mailed the next business day...well in advance of the year-end deadline.Sound OK you you all ??

My mailing address is:

Susan Aspeotes
25510 Rocky Mount Lane
Waynesville MO 65583

The Move to RAW

It's a humid summer's evening here and I finally have a chance to sit down and update some more....

Let's talk about Morgan now...she is my remaining Golden Retriever and she will be 14 in a few weeks. This sweet old gal had battled recurrent hot spots and other skin issues for many years....I changed foods....I had her tested for thyroid problems...and while she'd enjoy some small measure of relief....the skin problems just did not go away.

Last Fall...I put her on Grain Free dog food and the change was dramatic...no more hot spots or chewing on her legs....even her stinky ears were clearing up. Well....give a Stupid Smack...Morgan wasn't just allergic to corn and wheat in her former dog foods...she was simply GRAIN INTOLERANT !

She'd done so well on Grain Free that I soon changed the other dogs to the same dog food and they, too, showed improvements in their coat condition.

A few weeks ago...I took the dietary change one step further....to a RAW diet. Of course the dogs still get some dog food in the evenings ( still grain free )....the RAW now encompasses abut 70% of their total dietary intake...and will remain so for a while yet as I still have several large sacks of kibble to use up ... after that I will keep some small bags handy for hubby to feed if necessary,,,in case of illness, boarding or if I should have to travel overnight for work.

The dogs were sure comical at their first RAW snack. I had gone shopping with hubby and picked up a package of raw chicken wings and after putting away the rest of the groceries...opened the package up and gave each dog a wing.

Morgan munched hers down right away....Penny was a little more reserved BUT Peggy Sue and Zander glared at me as if I had totally lost my mind...

" Uhhhhh......'cuse me.....what is this ??? It's RAW....ewwwwww....GROSS !!!! "

Took a few minutes to convince the Newfs that I really, truly wasn't trying to POISON them and decided to give in and crunch-munch on the wing. Next morning they got raw meaty pork neck bones and those met with immediate approval....and now they get so excited when the raw food comes out of the freezer or fridge that I would hate to accidentally drop a package of meat as I am sure the herd would come thundering in...grab it and run.

Of course, they are also now capitalizing on the fact that they get TWO meals a day instead of just the dog food in the evenings when I come home from work. Their main meal is now BREAKFAST and this is the RAW meal; dinner is just a small portion of grain free kibble....probably about 1/4 of what they got before.

I get an excellent price on raw chicken necks ( in a 40 lb case ) from one of our local grocery stores ( in fact just placed another order ) ; and I divide this up into 3-4 lb freezer bags. I also get large packages of raw pork necks ( will see about a case lot of those ) and large raw meaty shank bones from the same store. From another supplier I get 1 and 2 lb containers of raw green tripe and this last order also got the dogs some beef organ and chicken organ blend and also some ground Rabbit/Vegetables. Once a week or so the dogs get canned mackerel...OK...not technically RAW...but still a good protein source and a source of essential fatty acids.

When the dogs get a meal of other than the raw chicken or pork bones, they get a portion of steamed mashed vegetables and oatmeal which they all love. We also supplement with cold pressed salmon and sardine oils and a kelp supplement made especially for dogs on the RAW diet.

I believe my dogs are coming into the best shape of their lives and I wish I had not thought for years that people who fed their pets a RAW diet were crackpots...because they sure are NOT. In fact, I even recently purchased another freezer...a small frost free that became the family freezer and the older, manual defrost, is now the storage freezer for the dogs' food and also some of my cookie ingredients.

Morgan had had severe tartar encrusted on her teeth and after just a little over a month on RAW...her teeth are almost perfectly CLEAN; Zander had been scheduled for a dental cleaning last month and after the diet change I was able to cancel the appointment. Peggy Sue had shown just a little staining of her teeth....GONE...and Penny's teeth have also shown massive improvement.

No stinky ears and cotton pads full of greasy smelling discharge ...coats no longer show dryness and doggy dandruff and all (especially Morgan ) seem much more mentally alert and that is saying a lot for this almost 14 year old dog. And, since, at her last check-up, her geriatric blood panels were all normal...I have reason to believe that this sweet old gal will be with me a lot longer....

Huge thanks go to Peggy Lange and many, many other Newf-L members for educating me on the benefits of the RAW diet and for their reading shelf recommendations to further the learning process.

Back Again !!!!

Yes, it's been far too long since the blog was updated...so since I am enjoying a long-overdue and well-deserved week's leave....time to get this taken care of.

There have been loads of changes since November....so first with the dogs...

Most of you know that my darling Mollie ( Good Golly Miss Mollie JT, CGC ) passed away on March 5, 2008. Mollie was my very first Newfoundland and the absolute light of my life. Mollie was 11 years, 9 months and 5 days old at the time of her passing...a good long life for a Newf...although far too short of a time for us to love each other.

Mollie came to me as a breeder re-home from Julie Thomas ( Windancer Newfoundlands ) in August of 2001; Mollie and I bonded, I believe, right from the beginning. She thoroughly enjoyed life as a spoiled rotten house Newf.

Although Mollie had had her CGC and was listed with Therapy Dogs, Inc for a few years, due to work commitments we did not make near as many Therapy visits as I would have wanted to make...but what we did do, we enjoyed. Perhaps Mollie's greatest joy was in being around children...all ages and sizes...she loved them all. The summer before she passed away, we took every Wednesday off during a local school's Summer program and two classes took turns reading to Mollie .. and one day we taught a special Safety program. She grew to look forward to those Wednesday afternoons.

Mollie was the "M" in M & Zee's...she always will be....she loved her morning and evening cookies so very much and often when I was late in handing out her "allotment"...she would stand by the cookie canister and BOOF insistently until I gave her her due.

Mollie had had increasing arthritis issues and living in a two story house with the main living area upstairs did not help the matter. In February she also got a diagnosis of Spondylosis with neurological complications. A series of supplements and the use of a Lift & Assist Harness bought us more time than what she would have had otherwise...but..soon these had no effect and although Mollie's mind remained sharply intact...she simply could not walk without difficulty and this was the deciding factor in helping her to the Bridge. It allows a dog no dignity if they lower themselves to potty and then cannot get up and away from their wastes...and I bawled that whole last evening and morning when I took her to the vet for a final relief from her pain.

Things were very unsettling with my sadness over Mollie's death and a sudden, dramatic increase in work responsibilities.....and I noticed that Jessie, a Golden Retriever of advancing age, was having difficulties keeping food down. It came on, I thought, rather suddenly.

Jessie was adopted in January 2000 and I believe she was around 5 years old at that time. She came from an irresponsible family who had allowed this tiny Golden to whelp litter after litter of puppies; the one she'd had shortly before adoption left her an emaciated wreck. She weighed 33 lbs...no kidding...when I took her to the vet the day I'd picked her up ..and her lack of grooming care necessitated the 4-65 Air conditioner ( translation...4 windows down and 65 miles per hour ). As soon as we got home it was into the bathtub and the full effect of her emaciation became really apparent. This was a lost soul if there ever was one.

I had had no intention of adopting Jessie but God, in His Infinite Wisdom, had another plan ..and Jessie stayed on. Jessie was very quiet and unassuming...and at times almost annoyingly "clingy" and velcro. But she made it quite clear that she was happy here.

A trip to the vet after alterations in diet and supplements gave no relief...and to my horror...she was given a diagnosis of Kidney Failure. She was placed on special renal diet dog food...which she hated .... and soon afterwards was placed on twice daily subcutaneous fluid infusions. The vomiting soon came back and I then opted to try to syringe feed her with pureed baby food.

She started to come back, I thought, and then just 6 weeks after her first diagnosis, developed a massive gastrointestinal hemorrhage and was sadly and lovingly helped to the Bridge.

So...in the space of a little over 2 months our herd was reduced by 1/3; and hopefully we will not see another passing for a long, long time.

Morgan will be celebrating her 14th Birthday later this month and she is still going hale and hearty..and were it not for the silver throughout her gorgeous Golden Retriever coat...one would find it hard to believe that she is that old.

Zander was rather perplexed when Mollie and Jessie were no longer here...so that made me extra glad that Peggy Sue so charmed Ron that he was the one to decide that she was going to stay.

Penny, the little Beagle mix, still rules the house; she makes the two Newfs sit sharply and say " Yes Ma'am" ..which never fails to amuse everyone.

There have also been loads of changes in the Cookie line-up; after careful consideration..I decided to discontinue the Apple/Carrot flavor and substitute it with Apple/Peanut Butter. This new flavor is a special favorite of my crew...made with freshly ground dry roasted peanuts..this is a cookie that even YOU could snack on and enjoy.

I also added a special Grain Free variety and this is also getting some good reviews. I took the ever popular Veggie/Parmesan recipe and eliminated all the grains..even the oatmeal...and added fresh white potatoes and an organic sweet potato flour. This is an interesting cookie to bake since there are no grains to bind the mixture....it certainly is NOT a pretty cookie and is somewhat difficult to shape and bake but those who have tried this for their dogs tell me that the dogs love them....so this is a flavor which will definitely stay.

I have been honored to be asked to support several Rescue fund-raisers...some for Newfoundlands and also for Golden and Labrador Retrievers and these are always a pleasure to do. We have also been able to support several local Shelter events with Gift Baskets and I have been told that these are always a hot item to bid for or to buy a raffle ticket for.

And coming again this year, we will have the Hanukkah treats...for our Jewish doggie friends....these were a spur of the moment addition last year. I take the regular recipes and bake them in the traditional Hanukkah shapes and package them in the appropriate theme bags. This was a fun addition as well as educational for me as I learned more about Jewish customs and traditions while researching and ensuring that my recipes were within the dietary guidelines ( although I do not have a kosher kitchen per se ) and baking the treats.

Due to all the responsibilities with the two ill dogs I had temporarily suspended the Challenge contests but these will again take place very soon. These were always a lot of fun for me and especially for those who participated...as not only did a Rescue get a prize check but the winner of the contest also got a nice assortment of cookies as a Thank You from me.

This is getting very long....so I will continue with more updates in a future installment.