The animals I work with
This post isn't about an animal I work with. Charlie is a Labrador Retriever who belongs to the mother of someone I USED to work with.
Sure, it's a stretch, but now you have an idea of how desperate I'm becoming for things to post about.
Renee (my former colleague), first showed me a picture of Charlie when he was a cute little puppy. He looked like that dog in the toilet paper commercial. Really, what's cuter than a Lab puppy?
Well, look at him now! He's gigantic.
Here's what Renee has to say about him:
You can see his "certificate of achievement" in the background for graduating from doggy obedience school. He's a good dog. He weighs 130 pounds (about 40 pounds more than my mother), but he doesn't give her any trouble.
He's really a nebbishy dog - doesn't like to go outside or touch grass (my mom claims he's allergic. Have you ever heard of a dog allergic to grass??)
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About the Bloggers
Daily Breeze reporter Donna Littlejohn has shared her homes with a succession of wonderful, funny, and occasionally difficult canines -- Muffin, Fritz, Ellie, Mercy, Pilgrim and now Cowboy, an Australian shepherd-border collie, and Tess, a border collie. From strong-willed terriers to weirdly obsessed Australian shepherds, they've invaded her world with boundless energy, wet noses, muddy paws and soggy tennis balls. But they've really brought so much more than that -- like laughter and joy, some unexpected life lessons, and more than a few tears along the way.
E-mail Donna at donna.littlejohn@dailybreeze.com.
Josh Grossberg grew up with the usual array of animals: goldfish, dogs, hamsters, parakeets and turtles. He now owns the loudest dog in the South Bay(Video: Rocket the Dog) and is the least popular person on his block. He spends his free time in dog parks, pet shops and always has an extra plastic bag in his pocket just in case. He also has a cat.
E-mail Josh at josh.grossberg@dailybreeze.com.
YES! I have heard of dogs allergic to grass, only because I owned a Yellow Lab much like the one in the photo who we would keep wrapped up like a high stepping race horse. It was a problem, but finally alleviated by eliminating all chemicals used in the garden as they were the source of the irritation. If the dog chews on his feet, consider using a paste of goldenseal root powder and a little water. It acts as an excellent antibacterial and is unpleasant to the taste so the pet doesn't keep licking and making the rashes/irritation worse. It seemed that our yellow lab had a lot of skin conditions, it is rumored to run in lighter colored dogs more than the darker yellows or black labs. Don't get me started on the chocolates, they deserve their own website for all their quirks and specialness.
Although some may take me to task for suggesting 'holistic' treatments, it is never a substitute for traditional veterinary care - but - I do believe that if you can do something right away from a small first aid kit kept at home, you can start a healing process before your vet visit which can sometimes take a few days. If anything can soothe an animal's irritation or improve well being, I think it's just good work on the part of the companion owner and helps us be better humans to these furry wonders in our lives.