Valentines

Bowser does not have heartworms, hurray!
I bought some heartworm prevention that also deworms other worms. Bowser's weight meant I had to buy a pack for dogs 50-100 lbs and another pack for dogs up to 12 pounds, and he has to take two pills each month. It isn't cheap stuff, but if it also deworms all other kinds of worms too, it is worth it.

I got a "Valentine" in the mail yesterday from dogsdeservebetter.com
I went to the website, and found that in order for me to have gotten it, someone had to have given my address to them.
The "Valentine" is a plea to not keep your dog chained up or penned up, because it is sad and unfair to the dog. My neighbor has a Dogs Deserve Better bumper sticker on their car, so it is pretty obvious that my neighbor thinks I am a bad dog owner.

My dogs are not indoor dogs. Bowser was for about 6 months of his life. During that six months, my walls developed permanent discoloration due to his drool. Every baseboard in the house was blackened with dirt. Every corner of every room had a tumbleweed of dog fur. The chewing of doors and window sills I can blame on me, but no matter how much I cleaned (which was a lot!), even with just Bowser in the house, my home was unsanitary.

Our downstairs opens into a basement and a garage. This is the area that I have set up for my dogs. I sweep and pick up daily. I have beds, blankets, toys, filtered water containers, and 10x20 kennels for each dog down there. They also spend about 7 hours a day outside in our fenced backyard. Since my neighbors can not see the inside of my house, I presume that it is the hours that they spend in my fence that I am being judged for.

Yesterday I was really offended and angry to have gotten that "Valentine". Today I realize that I *haven't* been fair to my dogs. I know this. The beginning of my blog is all about that. I am trying hard to change things, and I will. I am just sad that my neglect was noticeable even by my neighbors.

Soon, maybe even today, Bowser will head to doggie bootcamp for three weeks of training. While he is gone, I intend to work on training my other dog, and I also want to find ways of making my backyard a fun place for the dogs to play. I have ideas: a tunnel, some platforms and ramps, stairs, etc. I can't bring my dogs inside. My desire to provide a sanitary home for my baby outweighs my desire to have my dogs indoors, but I can do better about making sure my dogs are living fulfilling lives.