The Performing Dogs at the Monte Carlo Circus - 4

This little Papillon or Papillon-mix is sitting at the back of the enclosure, not at all interested in the people looking in. Papillons are, by nature, a little wary of strangers so perhaps that accounts for it although a circus dog must have to meet all sorts, one would think.

The Performing Dogs at the Monte Carlo Circus - 3

Another circus dog - this time a pretty little Shetland Sheepdog mix - I think?

There's a labrador on Monte Carlo Daily Photo today waiting to steal popcorn from a child...as if!

My New Years Workout

Since the New Year, my people have been helping me workout more. They have been letting me run on my treadmill almost everyday. I LOVE running on my treadmill, it is so much fun!  

I got this cool new harness called a back pack to help me work out while the tiny human was here. My people say I am a real working dog when I wear it. When I am more used to wearing it and I don't bump in to things so much, I can carry stuff around for us all, like water and treats. That will be really cool. I like to work and be a good boy. Here I am getting ready to go for a walk in my back pack. I was wondering what was taking so long - lets go!

I have been helping my dad on his bicycle, too. When we go to his races I run next to him after his race to show him that I am a good athlete too. I can run so fast I'm sure he has a hard time keeping up with me. Here we are resting after our workout.My people say a tired Uba is a good Uba, so I hope all my working out makes me a good dog because I do get tired.

hugs,

Uba

The Performing Dogs at the Monte Carlo Circus - 2

This little dog really looks like a circus dog, doesn't he? Can't you just see him doing tricks to make the audience laugh? Perhaps he's the one that turns somersaults?

The main photo fades on his left because that was shadow from one of the bars.

The Performing Dogs at the Monte Carlo Circus - 1

Each year Monaco holds holds the Festival of Circus which is one of the most prestigious events in the circus world. This year, the 33rd year, one of the acts was 'Wolfgang Laurenburger and his Performing Dogs,' They won one of the special prizes.

There were three exercise areas along by the sea, not far from the main tent and over the next few days we'll take a look at more dogs.

You can see a beautiful little black dog and also a a photo of all of them performing on Monte Carlo Daily Photo today.

The Blind Dog

No, the light hasn't caught her eyes, Goldy, the cocker spaniel is completely blind. (I didn't see the grass on her nose till later but then Goldy uses her nose all the time).

Goldy has been coming to Pension Milou for a few years now. She's eleven years old and was bought in a shop in Nice when she was just four months. She lives with a beautiful French lady called Catherine and her two children in Monaco and in La Turbie where she enjoys the garden. Two years ago when Catherine went through a divorce, sweet Goldy was there for her. And Catherine has always been there for Goldy - it's a relationship that is beautiful to see.

When Goldy was one year old, she was diagnosed with degradation of the retina and Catherine was told she would eventually go completely blind. She deteriorated but for years still had the tiniest amount of sight and so she managed very well here, finding her way down the steps to the garden. She'd even go on the ski lift with the family when they visit Valberg - and she still does.

Catherine and I used to discuss how Goldy would manage when she went completely blind and I told her I was sure , because she was so familiar with her Monaco apartment and with this house and garden, that she'd do fine.

I was wrong. One day Catherine called to say that Goldy had suddenly gone completely blind and that she was at a standstill. She wouldn't move. It took a month before she found her confidence and could find her way around her apartment alone. The same happened here. She was terrified, frozen to the spot, and I had to guide her everywhere for the first few visits.

But you know, dogs are amazing. Goldy is so brave. She now walks around, nose glued to the ground - that's how she finds her way about - she moves slowly, especially going down the flight of steps to the garden. But she manages. She won't be rushed. She trusts her nose more than me. She sleeps in the kitchen, behind a baby gate. I feel that is best for her. She has security with no other dogs to bother her. I was concerned some of the dogs wouldn't understand why she doesn't react as other dogs do and so perhaps could hurt her. In fact, at times, when she's with the dogs outside, they are fine and she always likes to sniff them and say hello. She knows the kitchen area though - she can find the water bowl, she knows where her bed is located.

Her head is always on one side, cocked, listening for sounds. When I go into the kitchen, she perks up - is it food time? Goldy loves her food. And she is so trusting. When it's 'biscuit time' before bed, she stands there waiting - she knows I won't forget to give her a biscuit. Or two.

Dogs astound me. They are brave, they don't complain, they even enjoy life despite their physical problems. Didn't someone say, 'Everything I learned, I learned from my dog?' That is surely so.

Every dog I've owned has taught me something different and some of the dogs who come to stay teach me too. There are new challenges with Mistral and Mia. With Mistral I'm learning patience as she won't allow me to relax on the sofa. If I'm reading she'll paw the book out of my hand for attention. She isn't yet able to sit beside me, me stroking her, she has to continually push and prod me for yet more. Not very relaxing when I want to watch the television. Patience, Jilly.

Mia is scared of strangers and has obviously been beaten by a man as she goes crazy when she sees one, wanting to get as far away from him as possible and telling me with her continual barking that this dreadful creature is in the vicinity. Yet, she's not as needy for affection as Mistral. She's happy to sit alongside, just so long as she knows where I am. With her though I have to deal with her mad crazy barking when I prepare the food. Any other dog I'd tell to be quiet. With Mia, I'm trying Cesar Millan's (The Dog Whisperer) technique of saying quietly and calmly - but definitely - 'Psst' - and slowly we are getting there. There is improvement with strangers - she too is brave - she sometimes ventures up to sniff a hand, but then runs away again. We'll get there...

From our dogs, we learn how to love unselfishly. We learn compassion, patience, how to fall about with laughter and so much more. Goldy taught me about courage and not to complain. It can't be easy for her to stay at Pension Milou and when Catherine comes to collect her, she goes crazy and is truly happy again. It's almost as if she knows Catherine has to go away sometimes and so she bravely puts up with the time spent here. Goldy is a kind dog. Another lesson.

Pepito

A really cute little Papillon in Fontvieille, Monaco but he wouldn't keep still, wouldn't look at the camera, so this is the best I could do. Papillons, by nature and breeding, are wary of strangers, so it's not a surprise.

The owner of Pepito - who is 10 years old, by the way - said he's not a pure-bred Papillon but is a cross between a Papillon and a Chihuahua is, apparently, known as a Chihuahua Irlandais (Irish). I can find no reference to this breed anywhere so have listed him here as a Papillon as he looks like one.

I've often found dogs in France called something that doesn't exist - sold to owners as a specific breed when there is no such thing.

Roy

This fine looking labrador was walking past the tigers, currently installed in an enclosure outside the circus tent. I was surprised that all the dogs walking by just ignored the tigers - and vice versa. There are several barriers, of course, between the public and the tigers, but even so you'd think the dogs would be intrigued by interesting smells and sounds.

Roy is 7 years old and lives in Monaco.

A Very Important Day

Hey Everybody!

I got long snuggles with my lady this morning while she watched TV. It was great- just like a whole extra Saturday! I even got a cookie! She said it was a Very Important Day because of something called Politics. I don't know much about Politics, but she said the man on the TV was our new President, which is like a pack leader. She said he talked about freedom and respect for everybody no matter who you are or what you believe. That sounds just like what pit bulls need, too. Sometimes people make faces at my man and lady or say mean things about us, and they haven't even met us! But this year things seem different. Lots of new friends are finding forever homes, and more people are getting a chance to learn new things about all of us. Maybe they'll keep letting us be ourselves and not judge us just because of where we came from. I sure hope so.

Well, after all that hard TV-watching I was ready for my nap, and today I'm just glad I'm free to be me in the sun.

Love,

Ernie

ANGELITA & AYALA 17 MONTHS

Didji

This photograph wasn't supposed to turn out like this. I was at the vet's office collecting one of the dogs and saw this adorable French bulldog with the bandaged paw. I turned the camera to the pet setting and snapped - then thought perhaps I needed flash and took a couple more. Well the ones with flash didn't turn out at all because, I suppose, the flash didn't fire. And this one, as you see, has picked out the luminous quality of the harness and lead, leaving the dog rather dark. Still I quite like it, and adore the dog.

So Didji is obviously a dog who shows up in the dark. Isn't she adorable? She's only a pup - 8 months old, and lives near to Monaco in Beausoleil.

It's the Jhumpa Cam! Say "Cheese"!

You are never gonna believe this! Back when we had the real tree in our house and all the pretty lights everywhere, I got a whole bunch of new toys and fun games and lots of treats from my person and my Gramma and Grampa and my Uncle Glenn and my cousin, Kapowie. See, Powie is my favorite friend in the whole wide world - he's a dog, like me, but he's really big and so silly and fun and he makes me want to jump and play a lot. He's so cool.

Anyhow, Uncle Glenn and Powie gave me this awesome present when we had the real tree in the house called a camera. I know my person has one of those but it looks real different from the one I got. Well, my camera snaps on the fancy necklace I wear every day and it clicks pictures of the stuff I'm looking at. Like this:

That's in my dining room and I'm sitting up on top of a big snuggle box (my person calls it a 'kennel' or sometimes a 'crate') so I can see out the window. I learned that cool trick to jump on top from one of my cats, Clarence the Cross-Eyed Lion and now I can jump up high just like him. Sometimes we sit up there together in the sun and I love it.

So then I wore my camera on my walk with my big brother, Pig, and got this funny picture of him walking. I like to walk back behind Piggy next to my person and my person says I heel real good. I don't know what that means but I really like to be by her so it works out great. Anyway, we all had to wear our warm coats today cause it was colder than ZERO degrees. Brrrrr. I still liked it anyway cause I got to see a lot of stuff with my camera.

Well, I'm real tired from my big Saturday so that's all for now. Stay tuned for more adventures from the Jhumpa Cam!!!

Post Op Blues

Update on Mistral...yesterday she was sterilized and whoopee, no bad things were found. The vet did remove a polyp from her insides and explained that is probably why I saw blood coming from the vulva.

She does have loads of mammary tumours though but the vet said these might get smaller now she's been spayed. Apparently they are hormone dependent, so fingers crossed. If not, she'll need those stripping out at some point. Hopefully they are not cancerous. She's obviously been over-bred and has also had puppies left on her for too long.

And she's also on a diet but I've not told her yet. Now that she's been sterilized I know from experience how important it is to keep weight off during those first months whilst the hormones are going crazy. If you don't, it's so hard to get it off later. In Mistral's case, she really had too much weight before we started but there was no choice - it had to be done.

She's doing well today, staggering about a bit but wouldn't you? She must be very uncomfortable but she ate some breakfast, so all appears well with the world.

In the not very good photograph below, you see the Pension Milou Sick Bay - Beau on one side with his bandages and Mistral on the other - a small plaster in the centre of her stomach.

Mia, meanwhile, is progressing. She needs more weight, the skin needs to improve but it is. Time is what she needs and hopefully we've both got plenty of that.

So far so good at Pension Milou. And thanks again to everyone for their support. En pension at the moment, is Maya, the Golden, Maggie, the Red and White Irish setter and Daisy, the Border Terrier - all are spayed so they are all being most understanding of Mistral!

Beau's Bandage

This is Beau, doing his best to look pretty pathetic. He's had enough of the new girls hogging this blog and decided it was his turn.

In fact, this operation had been planned a while ago. When Beau first came here from the refuge nearly three years ago he had a four and a half hour operation to remove both eardrums - his ears, neck area, down to the saliva glands, were full of infection. Indeed he still has a staph infection within himself. For two years following that operation he still kept getting abscesses on each side, just below the ear area. Then about 9 months ago one side (fingers crossed) finally healed up and since then no more abscesses but on the other side, he's had what the vet calls an 'open abscess' for months. The vet offered to operate again - free of charge, which is much appreciated - to see if it could be cleaned out and so solve the problem. Antibiotics by the way did zilch. I should think Beau has kept one of the pharmaceutical companies who manufacture antibiotics in business these last two years or so.

So a couple of days ago he was operated on but really there wasn't much the vet could do. Apparently he has loads of lumps and bumps - scar tissue - (he'd already been badly operated before the ear drums were removed) and this scar tissue is muddled up with nerves that operate the eyes, the throat etc. The vet said that unless we do an MRI scan and then micro-surgery it can't be done. It's too delicate and dangerous. So he's all bandaged up and really that's that. As the vet said, at his age - we don't know Beau's age but think he's over 10 - we'd not put him through a fourth operation. So hopefully, the clean-out might have helped a little, if not, we are back to cleaning the area every day as it oozes pus and sometimes, if we are lucky, just clear liquid. Beau accepts all this and even wags his tail when I bring the bowl of water to clean the area - he's that used to it now.

Note, in the photo below, Beau sitting on my coffee table. This cushion was put there for small dogs, not big ones! Note also how scratched the wood is. I suppose you could say it's dog antiquing. So, not only do I not have a proper sofa (you see the wrought iron daybed in the background) but I don't have a coffee table and I also don't have a comfortable chair. Beau takes that when he's not on the cushion and the new girls take the sofa along with various dogs who stay here en pension.

Update on the girls: Today Mistral goes to be spayed. Hopefully the vet will not find anything amiss and I'll report on this blog tomorrow. Mia, meanwhile, is eating like the proverbial horse but not putting on any weight that I can notice. Her skin is marginally better but she has a long way to go yet. In herself though, she is a much happier and more relaxed dog, unless a man appears and then she is terrified. Thank you so much to everyone for your comments and support. It means so much.

Lila and Topis

These two little black bundles of energy didn't want to be photographed but we sort of got there. Not an ideal place - part of the walking street of Menton that has a rather grubby surface and with my freezer bag in the background - not good photography, Jilly!

They are mother and daughter. Lila is 10 (she's the one with the shorter coat) and her daughter is Topis (wiry haired). Lila is 10 and Topis is 9. They were with their charming owners on a visit to Menton from Milan, where they live.

Update on Mama Mia and Mistral - please click on the link.

There's a Tiny Human in my Sunny Spot!

Last week my people cleaned up the room where Lulu and I nap in the sun and they closed the door and wouldn't let us in there. It was kind of annoying but they said someone called godson was coming to visit so we couldn't spend time in that room for a little while. Eventually a nice lady showed up with a tiny human. I've seen these tiny humans out on walks and at class, but never in my house before. I was kind of nervous. Maybe the tiny human would make everything change! He definitely seemed pretty scary.

The next day my dad said it was time for me to meet godson.
He let me and Lulu go into the room with our sunny spot and asked me to sit nicely and say hello to Khari, which is another name for godson, apparently.
hmmm... this tiny human may not be so bad. I gave him a cautious sniff, and a good lick to see.He didn't really like the lick, but he didn't seem too bad to me, so we enjoyed the sunny spot and talked about being small
This human puppy gets a lot of attention, and he still does scary things sometimes, but I am getting used to him. I hope I get to lick him again soon.
hugs,
Uba

crap dog in action

In this action sequence the sheep-like demeanour of the white woolly crap dog is made explicit. Note the two modes: looking up for dangerous predators; looking down for grass to eat.

fake crap dogs

In many ways these fake crap dogs are superior to the living dolls themselves. They do not slobber, yap, or need combing.

crap dog walk

This crap dog was photographed by my assistant being taken for a walk, but it isn't so much walking as cowering in shame and fear.

Cali

Meet Cali - she is a mix: a Pyrenean Mountain Dog and a Newfoundland and she is enormous! Isn't she gorgeous. She is 19 months old and lives in Monaco and she is adorable, so obedient and so gentle, which is just as well considering her size!

This was taken here, at Pension Milou - not exactly a dog I met walking along the beach but I wanted you to see her. She's fallen in love with a Golden Retriever since arriving a couple of days ago and they play non-stop.

Ubaldo

Eyes slightly closed against the sun, Ubaldo poses for the camera. He's 12 years old, a mix, and lives in Milan. He and his family had come to Menton over the weekend. A very handsome dog, don't you think?


For an update on Mama Mia and Mistral please click on Postcards from 'Pension Milou.'

To see a saint of a woman who cars for 250 dogs please click on Bibi in Belgrade.

The Visit to the Vet

Mama Mia and Mistral have now been here for 10 days and today we went to the vet for a check-up. We got back half an hour ago but as both were sick into every nook and and cranny of the car, I've been busy cleaning up. Yuck. I should know better and not have fed them this morning, but they weren't sick on the drive from the Languedoc so I thought they'd be OK. In hindsight, probably they weren't fed before that trip. Thank God, for leather car seats.

The day after they arrived, Mistral came into season - or so I thought. The blood tho stopped within a few hours then about 4 days later it started again. This time I checked her thoroughly and whilst it was coming from the vulva, she definitely isn't swollen or in heat. Two possibilities occurred to me - 1. that she has something wrong inside, like a tumour. 2. That she's pregnant and is aborting a re-absorbed pup!

So the vet checked them both over thoroughly.

Mistral: She doesn't think she's pregnant and we've booked her in for sterilization next Thursday. If she does have pups, they'll be removed. (If you are 'Right to Life,' sorry, there are too many adult dogs seeking homes, let alone unborn pups) Mistral is in far better condition than Mama Mia. Mistral's heart is good, teeth pretty clean, no ear problems, skin pretty much healed and she is even getting too fat now. We have to wait and see what the vet finds when she opens her up.

Mama Mia: She's in a far worse state even tho there is vast improvement from when she arrived. She has a heart murmur, her skin is still very bad although it's far less inflamed than before. We continue the baths for both of course but Mia has been given some special fatty supplement to help her skin. Her ears are disgusting and we now have a different treatment for them. She also has an infected toe which I didn't notice till this morning so that needs treating. She doesn't appear to be putting on weight but she is looking better. I can't give more food else she gets an upset tum.

Both continue antibiotics for several more weeks. Both cough occasionally but vet says it's a throat problem, not heart - simply from the conditions they've been living in. Should improve with luck. They cough after drinking water.

Getting them into the car was easy. Getting them out was easy but walking them through Cap d'Ail was a nightmare - at least it was was Mama Mia. My friend, Laura, met me and she walked Mistral (Mistral loves everyone and was no problem). Thank you, dear Laura, I couldn't have managed without you. I took Mia's lead and she practically had a heart attack every time she saw a man. Really I had to drag her through the street. She is absolutely terrified of men. If a man comes here she runs off and doesn't stop barking until he leaves. Last night a new dog arrived for interview (all guests at Pension Milou have to undergo an interview) - well she was terrified of the husband. Next time a man visits, I'll shut her in the kitchen, behind the babygate, and hope she settles. She's obviously been beaten, abused, whatever and by a man.

As for Beau, my beautiful Bruno de Jura, he didn't speak to me for two days after they arrived. You can see Beau - big black hound - in the smaller photo. How he knew they weren't normal visitors but were here to stay, I don't know, but he did. Beau came from a refuge nearly three years ago so he's a needy dog too. Then suddenly on the third day (and of course I fussed him like crazy and told him he was my very best and number one dog) he relented. Wagged his tail, came and sat with me and amazingly now totally accepts the two new girls. He doesn't care for dogs approaching his chair (re-read that - he doesn't care for dogs approaching MY chair) but now, when Mama Mia and Mistral approach, he accepts them - indeed, some mornings I find all three asleep together on the sofa.

Mistral has been trying to escape. Someone needs to tell this dog she's onto a good thing here. I told her if she keeps this up, she goes back to the Hell Hole. Only kidding... Hunting dogs have such a strong instinct to hunt and all around here are wild boar and all sorts of good smells so it's understandable. Anyway, she can't escape even tho she looks and hopes.

Progress. Now to air the car out and try and get rid of the smell. What fun...

If you think saving these two dogs is good news, I tell you it's nothing. Please take a look at Bibi from Belgrade's post today. This woman is a saint! 250 dogs and counting - all looking for a home.

Picasso

Meet Picasso. He's the first Grand Bassett Griffon Vendeen to appear on this blog. We've had the smaller version - the Petit Bassett Griffon Vendeen. This is the large version!

And isn't he gorgeous. He's standing here with his owners who are watching the skating at the ice rink by the Bastion in Menton. They were on holiday in Menton from Turin in Italy. You can read about both sizes of this breed by clicking on the link.

If you'd like to see a couple of great dog photos on Sydney Daily Photo, taken by my friend, Sally - please click on the link. They are really super.

I am not a Purse!

Tomorrow marks the 3rd week since my knee surgery and Iʼm supposed to avoid any rigorous activity for many more weeks. Things are going well and Iʼm feeling much better, though I keep getting picked up when I try to run after squirrels, when I try to run up or down stairs, and for that matter, when I try to do anything fun. Seems the surgeon had this all figured out and made sure I came equipped with a handle on my jacket. I feel like a purse.

They Took It Away!!

Hey everyone...The Inspector here! Sorry I haven't been around much, but I've just been trying not to freeze my tail off here in Minnesota. I need to figure out how to get M-guy and M-gal to move. It's so cold here a few weeks ago they even brought a tree inside to keep alive. It was even one of those trees that live through the winter for crying out loud. When they brought it inside, M-guy was watching me closely like I was going to do something to the tree....not sure what that would be though. Sniffing it made me want to pee, so I unfortunately had to take a break and head outside to color some of the snow. M-guy told me I was a very good boy. Not sure why the big fuss since I always go outside to go pee. Anyway, I got to go back in after that and investigate the tree some more to figure out what they didn't want me to do to it. The green pointy things smelled good, so I took a little taste. That must have been what he didn't want me to do because he opened my mouth, reached down my throat and pulled out all the skinny green things I snagged off the tree. They tasted so good though, I just couldn't help myself from trying again and again and again. They caught me most of the time unfortunately, but I was able to sneak some green goods off the tree here and there.

Then it happened - they went and took the tree away! If I would have known they were going to take it away because I kept eating it, I would have been more discreet. I figured I was golden until it warmed up at least. Don't they know that tree is not going to survive out there?!? I guess I'll have to settle for all these bones and new toys laying around that we got in these big socks that are hanging in the house for Christmas. Oh wait....I saw Santa this year and we hit it off.....maybe he'll get me another tree I can eat.

H

Christmas vacation!

Hey everybody! I've been so busy with school and playing with my friends that my people said I needed a vacation. Well, okay, they said they needed a vacation but I got to come too so that was fine with me. We went up to the mountains, and it was really, really cold but I got a new red jacket so I didn't mind very much. At least it wasn't a SWEATER. My lady says she's going to make me one soon, and if I don't watch out it might be pink. ACK! I sure hope not. My friend Hana would really look better in pink 'cause she's a girl. But this vacation was fun! We went for lots of walks in the snow, and I kept trying to dig to the bottom of all that cold stuff but it turns out it's really, really deep. We went for rides in the car and had lots of cookies, and my people were with me all the time so I showed them all kinds of things and brought out all my toys for them to play with. My man and lady laughed and said I'm cute when I'm tired.

I don't know what they meant-- I'm cute all the time! But I really was tired. This vacationing is hard work. Here's me on the way home right before my nice long nap. Zzzzzzzz.....

Love,

Ernie

So where am I supposed to sit, then?

These two poor dogs are getting somewhat above their station. After the horrors of the Hell Hole, you'd think Mama Mia and Mistral would be happy with the two comfortable beds I provided for them. Nice and big, with soft cushions and vet beds on top. Oh no! Yesterday they got up onto the sofa twice. Twice I told them to get down. And then, when I woke up this morning, there they were - and so here they are... (Please click on the link if you are new to this story).

So Beau has my chair and sometimes the cushion on the coffee table (usually the domain of the smaller dogs) and now the sofa has gone too. So where do I sit?

I hear you say this is a very strange looking sofa and you'd be right. I used, in another lifetime, to own a normal sofa, but when you look after dogs for a living it doesn't work. Someone comes in and pees against it, another is sick on it. Forget it! It's easier to have a wrought-iron day bed like this - you can wipe it down if necessary and change the bedding all the time. I keep telling myself that one day I'll get one of those deep sofas, enormous soft cushions, preferable white - but of course I know I never will.


Yesterday I went shopping for the first time since the new dogs have been here - left them for just over an hour. I so hoped they'd behave, not wreck the place, not pull stuff off the kitchen counter, not attack the closed door. I so hoped because tonight the plan is to leave them and go out to dinner in Menton with friends. When I got back, I listened outside the door. Not a sound. Opened the door and nothing...everyone was fast asleep. Mama Mia opened one eye and went back to sleep again. Mistral got up slowly. Beau didn't move, as per normal. The three little bichons, en pension, barked like crazy and Goldy, the blind dog in the kitchen, got up to say Hello. All was well. What luck, eh?

Another two baths each tomorrow and then to the vet mid-week for a check-up to see how they are doing, how their skin in particular is doing. I'll report after that.