Intoducing... Miss Mocha Chino!

Before I start I just have to say please forgive me for the lack of posts – as many of you probably know, I am a teacher and it is always hectic at the end of the school year! On top of that, I was finishing up three graduate courses and focusing all of my free time on my photography.

Recently, I assisted pet photographer Joseph Frazz, on a shoot that he donated his time and services to at Eleventh Hour Rescue (EHR) in Randolph, NJ. Joe was photographing the beautiful Mocha-Chino. While getting tips from Joe and helping him to get Mocha’s attention, I also took some of my own photos, which I will show throughout this post. 

happy to be out of the kennel

Mocha is a beautiful pittie mix who has been with Eleventh Hour for 2 years and 3 months. She was about 1 year old when she came to the shelter, and is about 3 now. While we’re not sure where Mocha was before coming to EHR, the story is that someone witnessed her being thrown from a moving vehicle (cue my intense rant about how much I f$&#ing hate people). 

Hearing that, you may not be surprised to learn that Mocha is weary of “strangers” (new people) at first. While she is nervous around both men and women, it is more so men. Generally, Mocha needs to meet someone 2-3 times before she lets her guard down and feels comfortable letting you touch her. Yet with just a little bit of time, she will love you more than you could imagine. 

Mocha loves her some Aunt Michelle!

Mocha is what many shelters call ‘dog selective’, meaning that while she isn’t ‘dog aggressive’ (aggressive with all dogs she meets), she needs to be introduced to other dogs properly and safely to see if they get along.

Michelle - who I may have mentioned in my first post as she helped me to adopt Madison – has a soft spot in her heart for Mocha and works closely with her to help to train Mocha and let her see just how great people can be – how loving, and trusting, and wonderful we really are. Mocha has made drastic changes in the years she has been at the kennel, and has become so much more trusting of people. 

At the photo shoot, I quickly learned that Mocha is nothing like Madison, in that Madison would give up anything to be able to chase a tennis ball, and she’d go all day, while Mocha couldn’t be less interested in chasing a ball. I was also amazed to see how well Mocha took to Joe and I (more so me, not to brag or anything ;-) hehe). Leaving Mocha alone, just letting her do her thing while we were present, Mocha would come up to Joe and I, sometimes jumping up to sniff our arm or lick us, or she would come right over and sit on my legs, allowing me to pet her. It was so nice to see how happy Michelle was to see Mocha’s progress, and I was so honored to have it happen with me! 

my face... haha

A few days after the shoot, I returned to the kennel with Michelle to take Mocha out, so that she could get used to me and I could be another person to take her out of the kennel. (Michelle often takes Mocha out during the week, but can’t get there on the weekends. I’m super close to the kennel and usually have my weekends free, so it works out perfectly!) Walking up to her kennel, I noticed a couple things: Mocha loves her “stuffys” and likes to show them to whoever comes up to her, and she smiled when she saw Michelle – something Michelle says she does every time she is able to go get her out of the kennel. 

Mocha liked the "stuffy" that Joe brought so much that he let her keep it :)

Mocha immediately did well with me, she must have remembered me. Michelle and I decided to take her over to my house to run around in my huge fenced-in backyard, as opposed to taking her to the park where she’d have to be leashed. Mocha was loving the freedom – there was a lot of sniffing and running around going on. Interestingly, Mocha also went right up to the slider doors to the basement, where my dogs were on the other side of, as well as the slider doors to the deck, where Jordan’s parents’ dogs were on the other end of. I think she wanted to play!

running free in the "run" at the kennel

enjoying the fresh grass at my house - "you're not a cow, Mocha! Stop eating the grass!"

Aside from sniffing around, Mocha would often “check back” with Michelle (or sometimes me!) to be pet or to snuggle up to us. I could tell that Mocha loves to snuggle up next to her people, which Michelle confirmed – she just wants to be near you. When I drove Mocha to my house from the kennel, she was leaning next to me the entire ride, while I pet her, trying to sneak in some kisses.

Mocha and I relaxing on my swing

I can’t understand why Mocha is still at the kennel after all this time – no dog should live their life in a cage, let alone one as sweet as Mocha. It seems that the biggest issue has been that she is ‘dog selective’. A lot of the people who are looking to adopt Mocha already have dogs. Mocha is working to get over her fear of other dogs, just as she has worked on her fear of new people. Mocha has fans everywhere -- a trainer in Sparta has kindly offered to dog test anyone who has a dog that may be interested in adopting Mocha to see how they get along. Also, once adopted, she has offered 3 free training sessions – awesome! 

However, if you would love for Mocha to be the “top dog” of your house, and are interested in her, please, check this sweetie out by contacting myself, Michelle (I can pass any inquiries along to her), or Eleventh Hour Rescue. You won’t be sorry – Mocha is loving, snuggly, and just adorably playful and is just patiently waiting for her fur-ever family.

silly little girl was rolling around in the grass like a crazed animal

will you be my fur-ever human?

Why, Jax?...Why??

I still remember the phone call. It was March 29th. I had just arrived in Long Island for my former college roommates baby shower (who just so happened to have her BEAUTIFUL baby boy, Brooks, this morning! Congratulations Lisa!), and it was one week from moving out of our apartment (thank GOD). I got a phone call from Jordan. I was surprised, as I hate talking on the phone and so we hardly ever call each other. The afternoon before we had our preliminary apartment inspection. “Well, we lost our security deposit”, Jordan said into the phone. What is he talking about? Oh my god, what happened? What did Avalon say?Turns out our latest puppy, Jax, who we had for 3 months at that point and who was approximately 6 months old, who has never chewed anything in those 3 months, chewed a hole in the carpet. Wonderful.

I was baffled, Jordan was mad, Jax was in the crate. I was also 2 hours away in another state. I asked Jordan to send me a picture and I said I’d figure something out when I got home that night. From the picture he sent me (see below), I thought “oh my gosh, he’s overreacting, we can totally fix that, no problem”. Wrong. The picture was deceiving. When I got home I saw the hole was giant, especially in the middle of our otherwise empty living room. It was approximately 4 x 4” and went straight down to the cement underneath it. Shit, I thought. We were supposed to move out in one week, and had just passed the preliminary inspection, as with my OCD-ness the apartment is pretty immaculate.









I also just really didn’t understand. Where did this come from? I had left that morning and he was fine, and even though I left, Jordan was still home, albeit sleeping. How did Jax go from chewing only on his toys to chewing a giant hole in the carpet? It didn’t make any sense.

I’d come to eat those words. Now, I’m surprised on the days when I come home to find out that Jax hasn’t eaten anything. Since moving into the new place, Jax has chewed more things than I can even think of at this point.

Let me clarify. Jax came from Puerto Rico, living off the streets, to our one-bedroom apartment that really wasn’t too big, and was on the second floor which made house-breaking him near impossible, as the whole idea with house-breaking a dog is to take them out in a timely manner. That’s hard to do when a puppy all of a sudden realizes it needs to pee, and you have to get his collar on (not to mention a sweater or jacket, as we were going through a polar vortex, and Jax who came from the heat of Puerto Rico would shiver and run back inside when stepping outside without the sweater I had to purchase for him), and then take an elevator down two flights of stairs. It wasn’t too fun, especially for the dogs, which I felt guilty about. NOW, we’re living in Jordan’s parents basement. His father works with construction and built an apartment in the basement so they can rent it out. It’s above ground and has sliders into the huge backyard that is completely fenced in, so the dogs can go out whenever they like, without a leash. The apartment is obviously one floor, and it’s an open floor plan, but it’s at least twice as big as the old apartment. You think Jax would be thrilled. You think he’d see it for the upgrade it is. Apparently not.

"All this is for me??"

The first sighting was when I was walking upstairs and saw wood chips all over the step. Peering down, I saw a giant chunk of the crown molding running up along the steps was missing. Besides the fact that we were renting, we were renting from Jordan'sparents who were doing us a huge favor by allowing us to save money while we house-search, so I was pissed. His parents are super easy-going, and laughed about it, thinking it was no big deal and something they could easily fix. We got a gate and blocked off the stairs so he wouldn't be able to get to the stairs anymore (save the time he jumped clean over the gate when he saw me walk over it to get upstairs).

A week or two go by and I'm grading papers at the 'desk' that is up against our sectional couch, and I receive a text from Jordan, "did you see what the little asshole did to my mini-keyboard/controller?" (it's an affectionate term, "little asshole"). I looked over and saw the teeth markings all over it. UGH! That thing was likely expensive, and Jordan used it all the time. Apologized, I did. Stupid Jax.

I had to make a quick trip to Target to pick up my photos I printed to the store, and thought I'd surprise Jordan with a real desk (our 'desk' was an end table that was very skinny). I'll be back in 30 minutes, max, I thought, so left Jax out of the crate.

I know what you're thinking, but I couldn't help it! I hate the idea of a dog spending most of their day  a crate, and I thought we'd be back so soon that he wouldn't have time to get angry or revengeful or whatever it was that was going on with him.

Cut to 2 hours later when Jordan's sister and I got back (oops). Wires all over the floor, I started internally freaking out. There could have been a fire!, He could have electrocuted himself!, What was he thinking?! Thankfully, kind of, it was only Jordan's mouse wire. It's okay, his mouse was fine! .... it just didn't connect to the computer anymore, as the wires were thrown around in little pieces on the wood floors. Damnit Jax.

I think we (I) made it up to Jordan a little bit with the new desk just for him, but I did end up finding out the hard way the mouse cost roughly $90. I'll say it again, damnit Jax.

Jordan and I have been together for roughly 2 1/2 years. For our 2 year anniversary in June, I made him this super adorable (if I do say so myself) "love book" titled "50 things I love about _____ from _____" (imagine mad-libs). It was so cute, and made me smile when I looked back at it, and it wasn't even for me! ...It doesn't make me smile anymore. I found it on the couch, under the couch, on the floor, and in the dog bed. See the aftermath, below. I was able to salvage most of it, but it's most definitely not the same.

Does anyone notice a pattern going on here? It seems to be only Jordan's things that are getting destroyed. Granted, I made the book, but at the time of the rampage, it was Jordan's.

By this point, Jax was only out of the crate at night, when he slept on the couch either with myself (I often fall asleep on the couch at night) or Madison. Then there wasn't much damage he could really do, right? Wrong.

Okay, so it's my fault. I'm an idiot. I admit it. Not even a week ago, I let the dogs outside on a beautiful day (fences are an amazing thing, I'll tell ya), and went to go to the gym. Jordan's sister was out on the trampoline with her friend, and I asked them to put the dogs back in the apartment whenever they came inside. Notice what I forgot? To tell her to put Jax in the crate.

I'm at the gym for about an hour when I get a text from Jordan's dad. "I was cleaning up outside and saw Jax chewing on what looked like a mouse pad. I took him out and then put him in the crate because we left".

GGAAAHHHH!!! What is WRONG with me?! An hour later when I got back, not only did I find Jordan's mouse pad ripped to shreds (thankfully it was free!), but also the papers I had brought home for NJ ASK. For those of you who don't know, I'm a teacher, and NJ ASK is a BIG deal (it shouldn't be, but I won't even get into that). It's the standardized tests that students grades 3-8 take in NJ, and the state is extremely strict about it with students and staff alike. This would only be my second year as an examiner, so I brought home all the information I was given so that I could refresh my memory.

Somehow, though the manilla folder was still closed when I got back, Jax managed to get the packet sitting on top, and rip it apart. Seriously, Jax, paper?! At least the book was hardcover.... what's so fun about paper? Thankfully the packet was just some directions I already knew, but I was beyond broken at this point. When was I going to learn? When was Jax going to have enough already?!

This leads me up to yesterday morning. The morning of NJ ASK testing for the 6th graders. I was sleeping in, rather than waking up to go to the gym, and heading to work early to make sure I was all set for my students. That is until Jax decided to wake me up at 5:30, when my alarm wasn't set to go off until 6:45. I ignored him. Big mistake.

Roughly around 6:30 I awake to the sound of chewing on what sounds like a plastic bottle. I know this because Maddie and Jax LOVE the toys that have plastic bottles inside them. A little too much, as they usually pull the bottles out of the toy. In my sleep-induced haze, I not-so-quickly realized that we don't have any plastic bottle toys right now, and that Jax was up to no good. Jumping out of bed, I see Jax on the couch (although he quickly jumped off, leaving the evidence behind, when he heard me), with our remote control. Chewed up, and pieces coming off. Completely unuseable at this point.

Needless to say, Jax now sleeps in the crate as well. If no one is home or awake and watching him, he's in the crate. I can't even feel guilty anymore. Not only is it incredibly frustrating for Jordan and myself, it also is not safe for Jax.

At one point I wondered if Jax had separation anxiety from me, and that's why he was chewing on things when only I wasn't home. He is very attached to me, and follows me around like, well, like a little puppy dog. But the remote control changed my mind about that. I also wonder if he isn't doing so well with the move, but logically it just doesn't make sense to me. This situation is so much better for him! I also wonder if he has some sort of oral fixation, or if that's even a thing. He chews and eats EVERYTHING when he's outside - plants, grass, sticks, anything he can find. It's exhausting.

I'm taking Jax to the vet this Saturday, hoping to get some answers, and also been in contact with a friend who works at a vet. I'm also contemplating with the idea of a "doggy boot camp" to see if it truly is just Jax "being a puppy".

Has anyone heard of issues like this? Any suggestions? PLEASE?!

Don't let this face fool you....

20 Things About Me (Us)

Alright, let's give this another shot. I was tagged on Instagram (@boots_and_rico) by Emily and Alden to share 20 things about myself and my doggies. I wrote this bigggg long list, ON MY PHONE, and submitted it and.... nothing. Wouldn't post. And of course I hadn't saved this list so I have to start over. I noticed Miranda was going to reply to this on her blog (woofssi.com) and I thought that was a great idea, as I'm WAY behind on posting. So without further ado, I'll try this again....

1) I am 26 years old (27 in June) and I already feel really old, even though I know people hate when I say that.

2) I am a 6th grade special education teacher and I love it more than I ever thought I would. I originally didn't want to teach special education, and didn't want to go above 3rd grade. After subbing in special ed classes, I realized I loved it and went back for my special ed certificate. I got placed in 5th grade and LOVED it before eventually moving to the middle school. Another place I didn't think I'd end up, but I feel at home there.

3) I just recently started blogging, and can't believe how happy it makes me to share stories about my babies (Maddie, Jax, Zoey and Brooklynn) and other dogs, even though I can't seem to keep on a good schedule of posting.

4) I have taken more photography courses than I can even comprehend right now, and have been snapping photos of all the dogs I can, in the hopes of becoming a pet photographer and working with shelters to help their dogs, especially pitties, get adopted. I admire photographers like Joesph Frazz who are so talented in their field.

5) I don't think I will ever not be in school, even though I generally hate taking them (at the time) even when I love the course content. I graduated from Quinnipiac University in CT, but stayed for graduate school. I moved home to NJ and went to graduate school again for my special ed certificate. Since then I've taken course after course online at TCNJ to learn more and improve myself as a teacher. It's really hard when you're working full-time, tutoring once/week, taking photography courses, and have 2 dogs, which is why I generally hate it, but I know it's good for my career and my brain.

6) Madison was returned once (or twice, I couldn't get a straight answer) before I adopted her when she was 4 months old, on October 14, 2012 (yes, I remember the exact date).

7) Madison is my first true dog, not a family dog, and I love her more than I could have ever imagined. I believe she truly knows I "rescued" her and she has shown me her thanks and love every single minute of every single day since.

8) Madison's foster mommy contacted me a few months after I adopted her and it has been the best experience. Chris is an amazing woman who, with her husband, fosters puppies at all times, giving them amazing starts, and then finds them great rescues to go to in order to find their forever home. I so love sharing Madison's adventures and pictures with Chris,a and love that I got to see pictures of Madison as a puppy, which I never thought I would.

9) Madison's birthday is the day before mine (another tidbit I got from Chris) - I'm June 14 and she's June 13.

10) I live with my boyfriend Jordan. We've lived together for one year before moving out of our first apartment, and we are now looking for our perfect home to grow into. We've been dating for 2 1/2 years.

11) Jordan works in TV Broadcasting at all different sports agencies (CBS sports, MLB Network, MSG, etc) and our schedules are pretty much exact opposites which SUCKS for us, but is great for the dogs (there's usually always someone home).

12) I so badly wanted to adopt Emily's (@loveisapittie on Instagram) foster Jada, and was wearing Jordan thin begging him. That is what led to him surprising me on our 2-year anniversary with dog toys and more dog food bowls to tell me we could get a second dog. Sadly but definitely understandably, he wanted to meet the pup before adopting one, so we obviously didn't get Jada. (But don't worry - she had her own happy ending!)

13) We found out about ARF of Mercer online and drove to South Jersey to a farm to look at liters of puppies with Maddie, which is where we found Jax (then Buster).

14) Jax came from Puerto Rico. The amazing women of ARF of Mercer make trips to Puerto Rico to rescue stray dogs. When we saw Jax, he was with his brother Toby and sister Sheila. They were estimated to be about 3 months of age.

15) The reason I wanted a second dog (right away, as opposed to once we got out of the apartment and into a house) was for Madison. I took her to the dog park almost every day after work but she still had so much energy and just lovedddd playing with other dogs.

16) As much as Madison loves playing with other dogs, once I start throwing the ball for her, she won't give them another glance. Maddie could (and has) chased balls for hours, without getting tired. Or with getting tired, but still wanting to play.

17) Jax loves Madison with all his little heart, and Maddie loves him back.

18) Jax has become such a mama's boy, and I think he may have separation anxiety from me, which I'm hoping explains why he chews on EVERYTHING when I'm not home (Jordan's video game controller, Jordan's mouse, the "love booklet" I made for Jordan for our anniversary, etc) which prompted me to crate him whenever we're not home. Also could have something to do with the move...

19) I truly wonder if Jax has some sort of oral fixation. When he's outside (or inside, as you saw) he will eat ANY and EVERY thing he sees - sticks, grass, weeds, pebbles, mulch, plants, etc.

20) I want a third dog, once we get a house and get settled, but I want him/her to be a foster dog, preferably a pittie or pittie mix. I love the idea of always having a third dog in the house, socializing the foster, as well as Maddie and Jax with dogs, and helping dogs to get out of the shelters and into a forever home.

That's about all for now! If you have any questions or want to know anything else about us - leave it in the comment section :)

Things I Love: Dogs & Books

Anyone who can see knows I love dogs (if that isn't the understatement of the year...), and anyone who knows me personally knows I love to read. I was that girl who would get yelled at for staying up past her bedtime, because I was under the covers with a flashlight and a book, unable to put the book down.

My favorite book I've ever read that was about a dog, is The Art of Racing in the Rain by Garth Stein. It had the point of view from the dog, Enzo, and was funny, sad, and happy all at once. I read it in one day, and was obsessed with finding other books like it.

I never did find one I loved as much as that book, but I have found others that I love, having to do with dogs. I thought I'd share some of my favorites, in the hopes that others will read and love them as much as I have. If you have any books about dogs that you love, please share them in the comments, below :)

A Dog's Purpose by Bruce Cameron
A Dog's Journey by Bruce Cameron
The Dogs Of Christmas by Bruce Cameron
Pure Joy: The Dogs We Love by Danielle Steel

When Curiosity Got the Best of Me...

Adopting Madison from Eleventh Hour Rescue of NJ, I knew she was a black lab mix, but that was it. She was 4 months old when I adopted her, and when I saw her running around our big yard the first few times, I told my dad, "she has boxer in her, look at the way she runs". She was also very paw-y, meaning she was constantly giving us high-fives and playing paws-first, which also made me think boxer. My dad was convinced I was wrong.

Cut to 6 months later when we had moved out of my parents and into an apartment with my boyfriend. Going from a big house with two other dogs and her own yard (although not fenced in) to a one-bedroom apartment, no other dogs, and with an elevator to go down every time she has to go out, I felt guilty as sin. Luckily, within 5 miles from us was a dog park, and I began taking Madison there almost every day after work (both of our first times at a dog park!). Madison had a blast, (although I had to wait to throw the ball for her, because once I did she wouldn't even look at another dog). Madison would get complimented daily, for her beautiful black coat, her white paws and white chest. It was always followed up with "what is she?" and I could only say, "she's a rescue, so all I know is black lab mix".

To be honest, I also thought she was part pittie, which I was very excited at the thought of, as I'd recently started learning more about pits and the terrible rap they are given, and so badly wanted to rescue one. Yet I wouldn't say this, because 1) my apartment didn't allow pits (don't even get me started), and 2) uneducated dog owners at the park might treat her differently if they thought she had pit in her.

After a month or two being asked what Maddie is, curiosity got the best of me and I went online to order a DNA test. Luckily, the Wisdom Panel DNA I ordered from Amazon for around 60 bucks ended up being a great choice, as I later found out their results are so accurate they are used in court cases. Madison came back as, ready for it? .... *drum roll* .... half labrador (duh) and half boxer & miniature long-haired dachshund (& some other mix).

My thoughts? First, disappointment that she wasn't part pittie. Second: excitement to rub it in my dad's face that I was right about the boxer. Third: bewilderment that she had a mini dachshund in her... what the?! After I digested it and thought about it, it actually made sense. Madison grew out long before she grew up, and she was uncharacteristically long, especially when she stretched out! I had a hard time buying clothes for her (yes, I'm that type of dog owner), because if it fit her body, it never came close to her butt.

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I had been begging Jordan for a second dog for awhile before he surprised me on our 2-year anniversary with a food/water bowl and dog toys. The next week, we set out to find a puppy to add to our family, and especially for Madison who still had a lot of energy and needed a friend to play with every day. It didn't look like it was going to happen for awhile, but eventually we found Jax (then named Buster) at a farm in South Jersey through ARF of Mercer.

We found out when we got there that these awesome women travel to Puerto Rico to rescue dogs and bring them back to America to find good homes for them. We knew that Jax was a mutt - he was on the street when rescued with other pups from his liter - but didn't even have a guess as to what breeds. From his ears that stood on end and the overall look of his face, Jordan and I, and everyone we talked to, guessed some sort of Shepard. (Did anyone else think that??)

When I brought Jax to the vet for his puppy shots, they asked if I wanted to do a DNA test. I said I was going to order from Wisdom Panel to do that, as I had my first dog, when I found out that was actually the company they used as well. Rather than using a couple swabs to get the DNA from inside Jax's mouth, as I had done for Madison, they took blood from him.

A few weeks went by, and the results were in. Hold your breath .... Jax had no Shepard in him. The results said he was half American Staffordshire Terrier (& some other mix) and half Lhasa Apso & Shiba Inu (& some other mix). When they have "other mix" listed, it is because the DNA goes too far past in generations (past grandparents), and they aren't able to say with exact certainty what the mix is. However, they give you a list of breeds that it could be, and the first one on Jax's list was Catahoula Leopard, which definitely makes sense when looking at his coat.

I was definitely surprised that he had no Shepard in him, but also very happy he was part pittie! I had helped save a pittie mix! Again came the bewilderment with Lhasa Apso and Shiba Inu. His fur is very very soft, so I kind of understand the Shiba Inu, but the Lhasa Apso just doesn't make sense to me - I just don't see it.

If you have rescued a pup and curiosity got the best of you and you did a DNA test on him or her, leave a comment and let me know what you thought your dog was, and what the results came back as! :)

Any Guesses?

New post (this week) will be on the results of the Wisdom Panel DNA I tested both Madison and Jax with. Before I write it, I am interested to see what guesses are out there. If you already know, please don't comment, but if you don't know, take a guess! Post in the comment box below :)

 Madison 

"I'll be on the look-out, Mommy!"

"Is this a good pose?"

Jax

"Being this cute gets exhausting!"

Mommy, could I get any cuter?

""Our Own Yard?! Oh Boy, Oh Boy, Oh Boy!"

This is a post between posts. Jordan, Maddie, Jax and I recently moved from our apartment (that I hated thanks to a miserable-of-a-human-being downstairs neighbor that we lovingly referred to as Esther because she was at least 80 years old) into a new apartment. It's only temporary, as we continue our search for our perfect first house, but moving is moving!

We spent Saturday and Sunday packing and moving, during which Madison was acting really funny. The best way to describe it is to simply say she was not herself - she was sulky, sad, and just moping around all day as my mom and I packed away boxes and boxes of Jordan and I's belongings. I think the poor girl thought we were leaving her. Over my dead body! Whatever it was, she couldn't be happier now!! Maddie and Jax are LOVING the new place - hardwood floors for them to run and slide around on, two doggies to play with upstairs, and a big sliding door they can sunbathe next to, or even OPEN UP to run around in their very own yard!!! Fenced-in and everything so Mom doesn't have to keep them on leashes! Needless to say, every look they give me seems to be saying "Thanks, Mom, we love it here!"

That's all for now. I took some quick photos of our new place for your enjoyment (taken with my Galaxy, not Nikon, so please excuse the quality). Keep checking back (or subscribe to get emails when a new post is published!) for new posts on:

• my favorite dog books
• a very sweet essay the girl I tutor wrote about rescue dogs
• Mocha Chino - a loveable adoptable dog from EHR (view her Facebook page here in the meantime)
• the results from the Wisdom Panel DNA tests I had done on Madison and Jax
• Jax and the story of the Hole in the Carpet
• and more.... if you have any suggestions or want to hear about something in particular, please share in the comment section, below! :)

good-bye, old apartment! (suck it, Esther!)

Madison looking stoic in her pink camo sweatshirt in "her" new bedroom (yes that's dog clothes I have hanging on my mirror, and yes they could probably fit a small child)

Maddie and Jax's favorite spot!

"Kitchen area" plus do you SEE that walk-in closet?!

Living Room

Our gawwwwwgeous kitchen!

Our "work area" which obviously is within view of our big screen ;-)

The doggy's area (for now, I need to make it look prettier)
*picture frame says "True Love" and has a dog licking it's human*

"Exercise room"? (Whatever, it counts)

Madison made herself right at home :)

"Where do you think you're going?!"

"All this excitement is making me tired!"

"Our own yard?! We love it!!"

Entry way :)

Love is a Pittie

I can't pin point exactly when I first became enamored with pitties, but it was probably around the time I first entered that Pet Smart's joint EHR adoption center (see: How It All Began...). Once I saw all the pit bull and pit bull-mix doggies that day, and then started volunteering there and saw how those dogs were always left in their cages while others got adopted, I began to realize the injustice. I don't think I really had an opinion on pits before. I knew the media gave them a bad rap, but I didn't believe any of it. I, like most people with a brain, knew it was prejudice at work, and that as with any person, any dog's personality or temperament will depend upon the individual and not the breed (or race or religious background or whatever else it may be). 

Photo from thefirstchurchofpitbullscd.blogspot.com/

A friend of a friend saw that I began volunteering and let me know that her sister Michelle worked there. I got in touch with Michelle via Facebook, which opened up my eyes to the horrible world that pit bulls live in. That's when I began wanting to help them as much as I could, and especially to have my next rescue be a pitbull or pittie-mix (although I had thought that Madison was a lab-pit mix... but I later found out she was not... more on that later). 

I do not use Twitter or Tumblr and really just use Facebook to keep up to date with people (and now to share hundreds of posts about dogs, rescues, pit bulls, etc), but I am obsessed with Instagram. (Feel free to follow me @boots_and_rico). 

It was one day, who knows how long ago, that I happened to accidentally click on the "Explore" tab when trying to post a picture. Of course, the adorable doggy picture caught my eye, so naturally I clicked on it. The username, @loveisapittie, intrigued me so I looked at the rest of her pictures. I was hooked. 

It's a Trudy butt (former foster of and photo from @loveisapittie)

I quickly learned that @loveisapittie, aka Emily, had two dogs of her own and fostered doggies from a shelter she works with. Through my immense stalking, It seemed she fostered quite a bunch already, and when they would get adopted, she'd take in another needy pittie and welcome it into her heart and into her home. She. Was. Awesome. I instantly loved her. She has gauged ears (ow), and many, many tattoos (side note: I've always hated tattoos -- too permanent for me, it's scary!) -- very different from my rather preppy style. But much like the "look" of a pit bull, did that matter? Absolutely not. It was her obvious huge heart that caught my attention (okay, the adorable pitties helped too). Since stalking her page on a daily basis, we began to chat more and more, and eventually became friends on Facebook (I know, MORE pictures of her/her dogs to stalk! Could it get any better?!). 

Emily and Hades (photo from @loveisapittie)

Emily and her (now three) dogs, Hades, Braylon, and Mercy Pi, live in Arizona. Living in New Jersey myself, it's not very likely we'll meet anytime soon. That doesn't stop my huge girl-crush on her though, my obsession with her dogs, my love for her mom's online shop (DeeGee Marie Gifts, omg love), or my daily Instagram "liking"'s of her posts. If anything, it only spurs me to think "hmmm... I could totally use a road trip out to Arizona..." 

Hades, Braylon, and Mercy Pi - how adorable are these mugs?! (photo from @loveisapittie)

Through Emily, I have learned of more awesome people. I started following what is my favorite blog, Our Waldo Bungie (you HAVE to read about their foster Moby, who just got adopted and now lives with these awesome people). I started following more dog-crazy, dog-obsessive, pit bull advocate, and just plain amazing people who love their dogs (and who posts a million pictures of their dogs) as much as I do! 

If you are looking to learn more about pit bulls and the true sweet hearts that they are (seriously, they're the most loyal dogs ever), and wish to see some ador-a-bull pictures of them in the meantime, please follow the lovely Emily. I promise you'll love her as much as I do (No I don't! I love her too much! And not only because my incessant begging of Jordan to adopt her former foster Jada led to our adopting Jaxson!)

Can you tell why I wanted Jada so badly? (photo from @loveisapittie)

I have a soft spot for handsome Hades (photo from @loveisapittie)

I love this pretty girl, oh, and Mercy Pi too (photo from @loveisapittie)

  

Graduation Day

Sup, dudes? Jax here. I've got big news! I grad-yoo-ated last week!!

showing mommy my sits

It was a pretty big deal. I've been going to the schools for almost two months now. My lady's name was Jessi and she taught me lots of ways to get "good boys". I did watch me, sit, down, stay, come, drop it, leave it, take it, walking nicely on the leash, and so much more! 

I graduated?! No way! 

Sit is the easiest. I just put my hiney on the ground and I get lots of good boys and treets! Leave it is SOO hard! My mommy drops delicious noms on the floor or holds them RIGHT in front of me and I'm not allowed to eat it! OMG it's torture. I do it though, because Jessi and my mommy make suchhh a big deal about it when I leave the noms alone, and then I get lots of pets and kisses AND I get a nom for leaving it! It's a pretty good deal.

My friend Brinkley was there as well. She graduated too, can you believe it?! Actually, all of us graduated. It was pretty exciting!  We all got da-ploh-mas (my mommy was so proud!) and a bag of yummy noms. We didn't get to keep the hat, but I really didn't like it anyway. I only sat so nicely with it because my lady Jessi held a nom up and I knew I'd get it if I did my sits nicely.

Our da-ploh-mas! 

Take my picture - I'm beautiful!

All this graduating is exhausting!

Anyway, my sister Maddie Poops is taunting me. She has Ellie the Elephant by the head and keeps walking right by me. She's such a tease... RIGHT?! It's time to go show her who's boss! Later, dudes!