The other day I added Funship Freddy to the toy mending pile. I hadn't repaired any of the stuffed toys in quite a while and as I added Freddy to the pile I had to stop and take note of just how many toys had piled up. There were quite a few!

I remember when it was just Denny. He had bags of toys lying about the house. Sometimes he would pick one up and carry it around but most of the time he would just lay down and sleep with them. They were never tossed around or chewed on.

Then Charlie came to live with us. He was a puppy and would destroy things. But as he stopped teething his destructive phase ended. He still likes to run around with toys in his mouth, and loves it when we throw the toy for him to fetch. But he does not destroy his. In fact, he still has his beloved Rudolph that we picked up for him at Battersea Dog's Home back in the UK the Christmas before we moved here.

Then, a little over a year ago, Phoebe came to live with us. She LOVES toys. She loves for us to throw the toys for her to fetch - she can go for hours! But Phebes also loves to destroy toys. When we first took her in, we bought rather expensive toys for her and the boys. After all, we were used to them lasting quite a while. However it didn't take long to discover that Phebes was going to rip them to shreds in no time and perhaps we had better just get her some cheapie stuffed animals that we wouldn't be upset to see massacred. We also learned to hide some of Denny's toys that he loved and would be upset to see gone. Ladybird (the ladybug) had been Denny's toy since he was a pup. One afternoon with Phebes and it had no face!

Phebe's favourite method of destruction is by ripping the neck apart. May I present the exhibits:

She also has some strange obsession with some of the toys. Monkey Boy #1 didn't last too long. He lost his first leg on day one and the second leg followed quickly. I've sewn him up numerous times and she always goes for the kill. Meanwhile, Monkey Boy #2 fared much better.

She carried him around by his head for so long that eventually the seam gave way. I've repaired him and now she is back to carrying him around. She plays with him, chases after him when he's thrown but doesn't rip him to shreds. In fact, she lays with him in her mouth. It's strange that some of the toys get this treatment while others are demolished in moments. Her skunk is another toy that she seems to treasure:

Thankfully it appears that Samson is more like Charlie & Denny in his play; he loves to pounce on the toys and then proceeds to slobber all over them but does not rip them up. He seems so happy just to have the toy and wants to savour his conquest:

Phebes now has us trained. We give her a toy and watch to see how quickly she will find it's weakness. If it is a toy with a squeaker we don't give it long to live as she is obsessed with tearing out the squeakers. We keep an eye on her and once the fiberfill starts to flow we pick it up and check the toy. We have several carcasses lying around where the stuffing has been removed but she will still play with the toy. We've also learned (the hard way) to make sure that once the toy has been ripped open we get the squeaker away from her so she does not swallow it.

The main thing is to keep her happy but safe. She certainly keeps us on our toes! But it's worth it to see how happy she is with her toys.

Posted by Robbi at 02:20 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

If any of you have ever been on a Carnival cruise you know who Funship Freddy is. To those of you who don't, he is the mascot of Carnival cruise lines.

He is a creepy little thing that is supposed to be a "live" representation of the trademark fantail funnels of the fleet. While on board the ships you will constantly see a grown man (woman?) trapped inside the polyester & fake fur costume with a permanently plastered grin on it's face. I find it a bit disturbing. Worse even, they turn this thing loose around children.

We don't consider ourselves violent people by nature, but sometimes we do get a bit of a sadistic kick out of things. So when we saw the Funship Freddy plush toy available in the ship's gift shop, Richard & I both had the same thought at the same time: "Phoebe must have this!"

You see, our darling Phoebe (who we have decided is really a Whippet/Pug even though her papers says she's a purebred Pug) LOVES stuffed toys. Although her favourites tend to have squeakers or talk boxes in them, she's not all that picky and will happily claim any stuffed toy as her own. (This explains why the Stieff Collectable AKC Pug is inside the glass curio.)

So when we came home we gave Phebes her new toy:

She immediately started running around with it trying to rip it's face off.

I must say, the thing is very well made. It took that girl the better part of the evening to get his nose ripped off.

We then let him rest for the remainder of the night and let her at him the next day. She had found his weakness and it wasn't long before he started oozing white fiberfill out of gashes in his face:

Freddy is now in that ever-growing pile of toys that need mending before they can be returned to the playing field. Maybe this weekend I can find 5 minutes to patch him up. Or maybe we'll find a toy at the dollar store for her to destroy instead.

Posted by Robbi at 04:30 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

The weekend before last was Richard's birthday. And since it was a "big" one this year we decided that he needed to celebrate it in style. We decided to take advantage of the fact that there is a cruise terminal in Galveston and we could easily do a long weekend away. So we booked a cruise to Cozumel, Mexico. Neither Richard nor I had ever been to Mexico so we were both looking forward to it. We sailed on the Carnival Ecstasy.

I had sailed Carnival before but not a ship this small. Even so, it was large enough to accommodate about what seemed like half of Texas trying to get away for the weekend. The ship had all your basic cruise ship attributes, such as the grand atrium.

More important, it had several bars serving nice fruity drinks!

During the cruise they also offered a wine tasting event which we attended (of course!) It provided several different types of wines with several different cheeses and fruit for sampling together. Yum!

As it was only a short cruise, we only had one stop: Cozumel! The water there was absolutely breathtaking. I can see why people want to snorkel there. Heck, you don't even need to be IN the water to see the fish:

The tour I wanted (touring the Mayan ruins in Tulum) was not offered on this sailing, so we opted for a tour of the island instead. We were shown the small Mayan ruin site of El Cedal but it didn't amount to much more than some rocks.

The tour took us on a circle of the island. We saw how the "other half" lives on the island. The main port of San Miguel is where the ships dock. On the opposite side of the island there is no electricity, running water or cell phone service. It was heaven! Especially when we stopped along the beach of El Mirador with it's limestone formations on the beach. Beautiful!

It was so peaceful and relaxing. We didn't want to leave. Unfortunately we had no other way back home so we had to get back to the ship.

We were docked next to the Carnival Fantasy in port. That's the ship that goes out for for 2 days longer and visits Jamaica. Next time!!! But even though it was a very short visit, we really hated leaving Cozumel.

So on the way back to Texas we had a chance to sit back, soak up some sun and allow ourselves to be pampered for just a little bit longer.

Our last night on board we made a special purchase just for Phoebe. It's the Carnival mascot "Funship Freddie."

So now we're back to the daily grind with just photos to remind us of our getaway.

Now we need to plan what we're going to do for MY birthday!

Posted by Robbi at 07:16 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Well, that's actually a bit of a debate around here. Not the happy part - we KNOW he's happy right now. But Richard seems to think Samson is getting a bit chubby. I just keep remembering how his ribs were sticking out when we first got him and I think he looks soooo good now!

As much as the little fella loves to eat, I've HAD to cut back on the amount I'm feeding him or else he really would be a porker in no time. He's still taking pills daily and I put those in cheese. I just can't take the cheese away from him - he loves it so much it just wouldn't be fair.

Meanwhile, he is getting so much stronger and his stamina is improving. We took him to Dr Hendrix on Saturday for a check-up. I'm thrilled to say his chest x-ray showed major improvement. His lungs aren't clear and may never be due to his heart problem and swallowing difficulty, but they are so much better than before. I was also very happy to see that he was quite perky during the visit and remained so the rest of the day. Before when we would take him he would come back absolutely worn out and sleep the rest of the day. But Saturday he was running around like a loon just like all the other furkids!

In fact, we really have to watch the guy. He's figured out how to get outside using the doggie door by himself. And he loves to go outside!

He just loves to be outside in the sunshine. He's perfectly content just to go outside and hang out in the yard or on the patio.

We worry about him because he still wobbles a bit when walking. He still has that crab-like walk and sometimes he ends up stumbling around in a circle before he makes it to his intended target. So we have to keep an eye on the little guy. Usually though, he only goes out when the other kids are out there too.

Because of the balance/gait issue, he has a very commanding stance:

He has to spread out his legs to maintain balance. Even doing this isn't always enough so sometimes he has to lean up against something:

But he gets around like a champ and seems to be a really happy guy. As his energy level has increased he has really taken an interest in toys. It's a bit much for him to chase a ball or tug on anything, but he really loves having a soft toy to chew on.

All in all I'd say he has settled in nicely and is doing very well. We're absolutely thrilled with his progress. I hope he's as happy as he seems!

We love you Samson!!

Posted by Robbi at 06:19 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

Today is a very difficult day for us. Our beloved Alfie passed away one year ago today.

It actually happened in the evening, so one year ago today we had no idea it was the last day we would have our sweet angel. It was actually a very good day. Ironically, we had a vet visit that afternoon. Alfie had put on weight and his coat was back to feeling like a plush toy's fur. Though he was still quite ill, he was alert and happy. We settled in that evening in front of the telly and Alfie fell asleep and quietly slipped away. His poor little heart just gave out.

It still hurts so badly I cannot describe. Right now I am sitting here with tears streaming down my face thinking of how my beautiful boy was stolen from me. We loved him so much and cannot imagine our how our lives would have been without him having been a part of it. He was perfect and we were so blessed to have had him with us for the short time he was.

He taught us so much and changed our lives so significantly. If not for Alfie we would not be involved with rescue. We are part of PugHearts because of him. Richard & I cannot look at a senior the same way now. And we cannot look at the sickest of our rescues without thinking of him and his brave fight. Because of him, Richard & I volunteered to take Lilly, knowing what the ultimate outcome would be but wanting to give her every chance. Because of him, we took in Samson. We knew he was gravely ill but we also knew we could give him the medical care he would get in a vet hospital plus the TLC and warmth he could only get in a home. We knew we could handle the sleepless nights and give the intensive medical care he needed. Alfie taught us that. He taught us to never give up on as long as the spark is still in that dog's eyes. Alfie never lost that spark - his body let him down but his spirit remained intact.

But I choose to remember Alfie's good days. We had a lot of those and for that I am thankful. The photo above is one of those days. It was Christmas. We had a house full of family and pugs. Denny, Charlie & Alfie were happy. Alfie was happiest lying next to someone on the sofa with a rawhide in his mouth. For Christmas he received this braided rawhide in his stocking. He was the happiest pug alive that day. And I am thankful that this is one of the memories I have of him.

I am so sorry that we didn't have more time with you Alfie. But thank you for sharing yourself with us for the time you did. We love you so much and look forward to seeing you again someday. We will look for you at the Bridge.

Posted by Robbi at 01:29 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)