My turtle recently almost died. His arm was stuck in his filter intake tube and I have no idea how long he was under water for but his head was lolling to one side and he was limp.

I started saying, "Don't be dead" over and over and was hysterical. He wasn't moving, I blew air into his nostrils a few times and he moved.

Every time he moved, I thought it would be his last until he would move next. He kept trying to lift his head but couldn't really.

My little brother drove me b/c I was too distraught to drive all over the place but no emergency vets (it was night) take exotics. I suddenly remembered the wildlife rehab I used to volunteer at and brought him there.

She was a volunteer but didn't know much and gave me useless advice. I later posted on line and people told me to keep him warm- unlike what the girl said, etc.

I kept looking at him every 15 minutes and he slept right next to my bed in a bucket. I was so happy when he started moving about.

I took him to his vet and she took an xray, couldn't see anything wrong with his leg and gave me painkillers 4 him.

Everyday he got better. This was a couple of weeks ago. His leg is still sore and he's not using it a whole lot and has lost weight b/c he hasn't had much of an appetite BUT he's ALIVE!

And even though it was all so horrible, he's alive and okay and that's what made it a highlight.

OK you asked for it. DH & I went up north for a week on vacation & we took our puggle named Pumpkin with us. It was a very dog friendly area, which made it great to be able to walk around all the beautiful little towns & bring our puppy with us. We were on our way to a little town to walk around & take in the sites but we got stopped in traffic that seemed to go on forever. The police said they were having a parade for the fourth of July & we could not drive any farther until after the parade was over. We all left our vehicles parked in the road walked to town & watched the small rural town parade. They had a group of pugs that walked in the parade & a lot of other dogs that walked or rode with their owners on their floats. After it was over we took pumpkin & went walking all over the town & by the lake. I had so many people stop me & ask what kind of puppy we had & wanted all the details about her. Then a little girl ran up to us & asked if she could pet the dog. She said she had been watching us from the top of the hill & just had to see our puppy up close & could she please pet her. She said she watched all of the dogs in the parade & walking around town & ours was by far the cutest dog ever. DH teases me all of the time now saying, hey lady is that there a genuine puggle? She is the prettiest puppy ever, can I pet her? DH found the whole thing amusing while I felt like a proud parent. LOL Terri

We were given a purebred Persian by a friend. Turns out, Smokey was used for breeding only, and didn't know how to play, had never been outside, etc. He'd been abandoned for a month when we got him.

Now, he's into everything, and even fighting with the other cats!

And 18 months ago, we rescued a 3 week old kitten. Hand fed her, etc. She's still tiny, but meaner than a snake most days! Still, can't give her up.

And this past summer, we built a cat room off the back porch. Now, the six cats can safely go outside and play in grass and get fresh air. Works for me!

Yeah, I have a happy story. I rescued a Rott/German Shepherd mix male who was a terror. He was on the fast track to be put down because he was so uncontrollable. He did not know how to play, had no manners except bad ones and was totally untrained. If he was loose, he was barking and attacking anything that moved. Most of the time he was confined in a kennel.

Now, two years later, he plays alone and with the other dog, does not need the kennel(I gave it away) and folks who knew him before swear he is a clone, not the dog he once was---even the cop who was beginning the paper process to have him declared a safety hazard.

sunshineTM/terri, please tell me where you went on vacation. I would love to go on vacation to a place like you described complete with small town parade and/or festival.

Please excuse the interruption, back to topic.

The 2 Weimaraner/Pit Bull puppies that y'all prayed over early this summer (they had parvo when I got them) are HUGE.

They're the funniest & most endearing dogs in the universe.

They have the yellow Weimar eyes, & the goofy personalities, & Rosie looks a little like a pit...
but only if you hold her ears back & squint your eyes.

She's a sort of pale chocolate;
if she were a horse I'd call her strawberry roan.

She's a good little dog, comes when she's called, loves everybody, doesn't challenge my big dog;
if the big dog eyeballs her, Rosie lies down completely flat & puts her head on the floor/ground until the big dog breaks eye contact.

I suspect Jasper is something other than pit:
he looks like a cross between Weimar & redbone coonhound, & he acts like a duck-
loves water, splashes in it, wallows in it, scoops it up in his mouth & lets it run out!

& he's exactly the color of a chocolate Lab.

Jasper also has a nurturing personality:
when one of the cats had a sore ear, Jasper began licking & grooming, & he still grooms that cat until the cat is sopping wet-or until the cat puts a stop to it!

Although they're nearly 6 months old, they're still very puppy-ish;
they run & play &, uh, want to sit in my lap...
& they make every one of my days brighter.

Big guy, who we thought 2 years ago would probably be gone by now, is now almost 13 and still looks to have a lot of time left with us. 2 years ago he almost over night started to show his age. Went from being an over-grown puppy, to a lazy old man. We thought surely that was the beginning of a decline. Not so, his hips are just a little rusty and he likes to sleep. But he'll still play like he's 6 months old.

Little girl has become the most well behaved dog I've ever owned, when she seemed like she'd be the worst. Our biggest accomplishment was realising just how well we've done without even knowing, when we found out she can be off leash, and do WELL off leash. She was the best behaved dog out there off leash, out of maybe 15-20 dogs. We never thought she'd ever be able to be off leash even for 10 seconds. She's gone from super-terror to poster child for obedience.

And my little calico. She's been through a lot, and after several, stressful changes through out her life. Having to be left alone often for long periods of time with just a few hours of play every few days from people who weren't me. Then having 2 dogs move in and another cat, along with 3 new people. Then getting 2 more cats. Having two of the cats move out and two people. She's finally back to her old self, and it's been more recently. She was always happy but it took a while to get her to purr, and didn't always happen. Before all this, all it took was saying her name to make her purr. Now she's back at it, happiest cat ever, again. Makes me feel better to know I didn't completely ruin things for her with all the changes, albeit some where out of my control. I knew she'd pull through and go back to being herself.

Recently, evening news has been depressing in my area. So, at 5:00 I take my 3 dogs outside with a nice glass of "sweet tea" and watch them romp.

Just like kids they love to show off. I end up giggeling my head off and their sillyness.

I don't know how they know it is 5:00, but they now come up to me twirling and begging for me to go outside with them.

I asked my DH, "How do they know it is 5:00". He said "Well the clock is right there on the wall, their not all that smart."

Or maybe its the music on TV when Oprah goes off the air.

Today is the 2nd anniversary adoption day of our cat, KiKi. She was a lucky little girl the morning my DH heard her crying for help when he was walking around the restaurant/lounge where he plays dominoes. He stopped to investigate and discovered her about 10 feet down in a 6 inch sewer drain pipe. After several attempts at getting her out with a rope he came home and got his trouble hook and fishing line and literally fished her out. She was @ 4 weeks old and just about dead. Today she is a happy beautiful part persian cat, my first. We had never thought about getting a cat but she found her forever home and we're so glad she did.

Some of you may recall from previous posts of mine that Lady has some fear aggression issues - particularly toward men and other dogs. Enter into our house Indy, who is going through the 3-month-old-ADHD-kitten stage. Could be major problems in the house and what was I thinking!! Well, my good news story is how incredibly patient Lady is with Indy. Indy swings from Lady's tail, chews on her paws and rubs endlessly against her face. All Lady does is sigh and look at me with an "is she done yet" look on her face. The only "scolding" that Lady has given to Indy, so far, was well deserved when Indy tried to go for a ride on Lady's back -- claws out. But even then, the scold was a bark and a nip. I would have been much worse! It's fun and funny to watch these two getting along in their own unique way.

I love hearing "bright spots" in a pet's life. Thanks for your stories !

"Well the clock is right there on the wall, their not all that smart."

snork!

quirkyquercus I started a new thread about the vacation info you wanted. Love hearing everyones stories. Thanks for sharing. Terri

Well, my 7 year old dog Hooligan went blind a few months ago (due to SARDS) and I was devastated. He was having a hard time getting around, spent a lot of time under the bed and even fell off our deck into our fish pond!!! I started working with him and teaching him new commands (up, down, and the most important- careful!) and now you would never know that this dog is blind. He runs in the yard, has started tracking the tennis ball again (his favorite game was fetch), and gets around like nothing is wrong. I forget that he is blind all the time. My other dog Hippo is going to be 11 next month, and she still acts like a puppy. They are both the two sweetest dogs, and they are so good to my children. :)

What makes me smile is when I come home from work and let my dog, Riese, out of his crate. He's the cuddliest, sweetest dog then! He spends a good 10min trying to be a loving lap dog. Course then he turns back to the ADHD dog that he is, but that moment after work melts me everytime. :0)

Kaiser, our Rottie, is the sweetest guy. He's only 15 months old, so still very puppy like attitude. He loves to go to PetSmart, only problem he gets really excited when we first get there. Takes him a few minutes to realize it socializing and shopping time, then he calms down.

Majority of the people scoop their little dogs up, grab their kids, and head the other direction when we are shopping. The people that aren't bothered by him will come up and ask to pet him, he immediately puts his "hand" out to shake when they ask.

He loves to go to the bird area and watch the birds in the cages. One day we were watching the birds and a little girl that was about 5 and as tall as Kaiser walks up (no parent in sight) and asked if she could pet him. He immediately shakes and gives her a kiss. Still no parent. She tells me she likes him and he smells good, continues to pet and kiss him. Still no parent. She wraps an arm around his neck and they both watch the birds about 5 minutes go by.

Finally, a parent frozen in place and wearing a horrified expression. I introduced us and explained that I watched her daughter for the last 10 minutes and Kaiser kept her company. She began to loosen up a bit and explained she was terrified of them because of their reputation. The little girl explained to her mom that he was the "most nicest dog ever" and refused to leave until her mom shook hands with him and gave him a kiss. Mom did and spent about 15 minutes loving on him. Little girl kissed him and hugged him bye.

It was such a sweet moment, with the little girl loving on him and a mom that left with a little more knowledge and a changed opinion.

How sweet ... I especially love Rottie stories ..

This is an oldie but a goodie.

(My friend Dave passed away the day before Thanksgiving 2006.)

Here is a link that might be useful: Brutus the Longhorn

Slvyiatexas- I'm sorry to hear about the loss of your friend. His story of Brutus is fantastic! I can't quit laughing :)