Happy Gotcha Day Tinker

This Tuesday, April 29, will be four years since our wonder boy came into our lives. Tinker the little dynamo, the little engine that does, is Mr. Happy Go Lucky. As you've read on this blog many times, he's always happy, always upbeat, even when he's going through a tough/rough stretch.

Happy 4th Gotcha day to the boy with the spotted feet and sweet tummy. We love you Tinker. :)

Happy Gotcha Day Virginia

In April of 2000, I surprised Caron for her birthday by taking her to SOSBeagles headquartered in Bordentown, NJ. I had been looking for a young female beagle for some time. I did searches in Yahoo and came up with some sources, but no luck (including Petfinder. That's when I stumbled across Beagles-on-the-Web (which ironically Caron now runs).

BotW had many links including rescue groups, which I really didn't know anything about at the time. Included was the link to SOS. Among the dogs listed was a picture of a sweet little tri-color female (only about 20 pounds then) who had both ears back and diamond shaped markings on her back. It said her name was Virginia. It was love at first. It seemed like her eyes were saying, "come and get me Daddy".

I immediately filled out an application and sent it off. I followed up with several phone calls over the next couple of weeks to be sure Virginia was still there. Finally, on April 20, 2000, Caron, my brother, and I drove to Bordentown on Caron's birthday.

She had no idea where we were going and still wasn't sure once we had pulled into the place. That is... until she heard the barking and arooing! She has trouble remembering anything after that.

We met two other dogs (Sadie and Pebbles, both of whom were later adopted) in addition to Virginia, but she "had me at hello". Caron said, "are we really going to do this?" And the rest is history.

Today was Virginia's 8th "gotcha day" and we couldn't have asked for more in a dog. We could do without the separation anxiety, but she's golden when it comes to everything else. She is as sweet as can be, smart as a whip, and a great big sister to Tinker.

Free at Last

Tinker's 4 weeks of crate rest are up and now he can slowly start working his way back to having his freedom. He'll be either in his ex-pen or loose (under supervision) for the next 3 weeks as he builds his muscle strength and stamina back up. If all goes as planned, he'll then be back to his usual routine (minus jumping up on the futon or jumping up and down while waiting for his food), and not be restricted other than the norm (i.e. no stairs).

Tink was a great patient while in the crate. He rarely complained and went right back in after eating or doing his outdoor business. A few nights ago we let him start sharing the bed again with Virginia at night, and we're sure we saw him smile. She's the straw that stirs the drink and he missed cuddling with her.

Thanks to everyone who sent their well wishes!

Holding Our Breath

If you saw this week's (3/9) photo you would have seen a picture of Tinker chilling in his crate. That's because our little dude is on 2-3 weeks of crate rest due to soreness in his back.

Tinker was acting a little odd last Monday and it continued into Tuesday morning. Based on what occurred 3 years ago, we wasted no time in calling up AERA to make an appointment with his neurologist, Dr. Massicotte.

After examining him thoroughly, Dr. Massicotte felt there were indications of soreness and discomfort in an area below where he had his surgery in 2005.


So back into the crate our little boy has gone. He's also getting a tapering dose of prednisone for the next 3 weeks. We go back for a follow up a week from Tuesday. We'll be thinking positive thoughts until then.

Time Certainly Flies

This past Saturday, March 1, was the 3rd anniversary of Tinker's return home following his disk surgery (Feb 23, 2005). It's hard to believe it has been 3 years since the whole nightmare occurred, but it is not hard to believe the progress Tinker has made since that day, because of his incredible spirit.

He never ceases to amaze us. He has walked unassisted since October, 2005. We actually have to discourage him from doing some things, such as jumping up and down while waiting for his food. It's incredible how high he can leap considering he had a back injury.















We have become Tinker's personal elevator service since we don't allow him to do stairs- in an attempt to lessen the risk of a future injury. He's allowed up on the futon, but not the couch or our bed, which are both considerably higher. And we monitor his rough housing with other dogs, since he basically loses his mind in play!

Most of all, we just let the boy be the boy. And make no mistake, it took some time for us to let go of our reservations and fears and let him be himself. It is very easy to be overprotective after such a devastating injury, but there's no stopping this 21 lb. bundle of Joy.

Tinker's Pals Needing Homes

Not every dog or dog owner is as lucky as Tinker and the two of us. There are other Beagles with the same or similar injuries that are looking for homes. Two of those dogs who are currently part of a Special Needs feature on Beagles on the Web, Trixie and Miss Haley, use carts to get around. Both of these dogs need loving, caring homes where they can just be themselves.

Just click on their pictures to view their Petfinder listings, and if you are interested in adopting or helping out one of these precious pups, please contact the appropriate rescue by phone or email.

Tinker says thanks! :)

Trixie











Miss Haley

Our Own Puppy Bowl

This weekend the Giants made Super Bowl magic and puppies made Puppy Bowl magic. But on Friday night and Saturday morning, we had our very own Puppy Bowl magic.

A few weeks ago, C found a Beagle/Shephard mix in a high-kill shelter in Georgia. A friend said she would adopt little Mary if no other adopters were found. Soon Mary was renamed Pandora, aka Pandy, and was on her way to Project Zero in South Carolina for a week. Then a transport took Pandy to a short term foster in southeastern Pennsylvania.

On Friday night, Pandy was transferred to me at my office and home we went. Unfortunately the weather was miserable on Friday so Pandy could not meet Tinker and Virginia outside. So inside we went and it wasn't long before Pandy became Pandemonium.

Endless puppy energy, chewing on everything she could get her teeth on and into, including our hands. Tinker was instantly in love. After dinner, he and Pandy wrestled for 2 hours straight. Finally, we put Pandy in her crate so wethey could get some rest. Virginia, meanwhile, was in no way, shape, or form happy to have a ball of energy bouncing around her.

Pandy slept through the night, without incident. The next day she wanted to wrestle Tinker again, but Tink, who will be 8 in a little over a week, just wanted to rest up. Pandy tried to entice Virginia, but after a small skirmish (the 2 girls barking in each other's faces), it was no dice. So Pandy just amused herself- rolling, biting, romping, rollicking until her new Mommy came to pick her up (needless to say it was love at first sight).

We waved bye-bye to Pandy and things went back to normal...after a very long nap.

Endless Summer

... If only that were the case. Tinker and Virginia certainly wouldn't mind an endless summer, especially if it meant getting to go to the beach every day. The dynamic duo had a terrific time on the Outer Banks of North Carolina, a very dog-friendly area.

As usual, Tinker spent most of his time on full alert, sniffing for any other dogs in the vicinity. When he'd see a new dog, he completely lost his mind- screeching, barking, begging to play with them. Now keep in mind that 90% of the dogs down there are off-leash, but Beagles should NEVER be off-leash. (Yes, I know there are people that may disagree, but once they pick up a scent, Beagles have their own built-in getaway car.)

Virginia, meanwhile, loves to find a spot and plop down with a "snoof"- exhaling away the sand from her nose as she lands. She does pop up when Tinker "sounds the alarm" that another dog is nearby, and then she begins to unleash her deep, throaty protective bark. This began, on vacations pre-Tinker, back in Cape Cod in 2000-2001. We had never seen her react like that before. But she is our beach blanket security guard and she does a fine job. When the "threat" passes we tell her to "stand down".

Both dogs love bananas, and we generally share pieces with them as we eat them. A bite for us, a piece for each of them, and so on. Well on vacation, my brother, sister, and Dad were all there, meaning lots more banana for the Beags. In fact, their "granddogpa" is referred to as "Bananaman" and they recognize exactly who we're referring to when we use that phrase.



During nighttime TV watching Virginia enjoyed her time curling up on one of the couches, while Tinker hunkered down along the side of the couch on a crate pad. Occasionally we would put their bed behind the couch and one or both dogs would curl up inside.

As you may recall, to decrease the chances of him blowing another disc, we don't allow Tinker to go up and down the stairs; so we carry him. Thankfully, he's only about 21.5 pounds and is built kind of like a cat, but it still can get tiresome hoofing it up and down the stairs while carrying him to take him out. It's especially tough in the large houses of the Outer Banks where we spend most of our time on the 3rd floor. But this house had an elevator...woo hoo...good stuff.

The elevator had a sliding inner fan door and each level had an outer door, which is built like an ordinary interior door. Each and every time Tinker went into the elevator, he would tip his head from side to side (like Nipper, the RCA dog), as he stared at the door, wondering what that noise was on the other side. Of course none of us thought to film it. Maybe next year.