Hysterectomy

Yes, fellow hound readers, I fell out due to an emergency surgery. You would think my injury might have been attributed to falling over a hound and impaling myself on something, but I can't blame this on the dogs. I will be back up and running-or-walking here shortly.

Drool to all.

Four A.M.

Is when Juno's deep, and heartfelt bay broke my REM sleep. I am quite sure I levitated straight up. WHAT IN GOD'S HOLY NAME?!! Because by then HoneyBelle and Ruby chimed in-the terrier screaming and both hounds bellering (we say beller in Texas). I am sure the neighbors are going to call the police. I run out with the mag light and this is what I find.

The mama opossum. If you read HoneyBelle's blog you would know she has already killed four of her babies. So I ran the dogs into the house to let the savage beast get away. And I rescind the music to my ears in the earlier post. It should have a disclaimer "only when I am awake."

Big Sister

We adopted a 1.5 year old Bloodhound last weekend. I am guessing she is the same age as HoneyBelle from the still growing teeth. I named her Juno which means "goddess" and "protector of women." Juno has had a rough start, a litter of pups before she herself is full grown, being tossed from a vehicle and abandoned, left to starve until a good woman takes her off the street and straight to the vet. She gets Juno well enough to find her a home. Which is ours. That is HoneyBelle's red, round butt to the left of the photo. She still has her devil costume on. This was Juno's first event so we did not overwhelm her too much by trussing her up in a costume. We took her to PetFest which is an event that supports our dog rescues. Juno received so many kisses, I hope she enjoyed herself. She is loved and has a home now. She and HoneyBelle have became fast friends. They both bay in unison when the train goes past, it is music to my ears.

The Screen Door Compromised

This was the last thing I saw shoot out the front screen door. Now any other time she is shuffling, fumbling or otherwise staggering INTO the house. Now all of a sudden she because fleet of foot and decides to fly. I had to fling my sausage gravy off the oven burner and run like hell after her. Luckily I was dressed. I caught up with her in the neighbors front yard one block away and throw myself across the top of her like a quarterback getting his ass smashed in an NFL game. I wish I had time to illustrate the rest of this show. At this point she goes flat and looses all function of being able to walk. At 70 pounds I can no longer pick her big ass up. I stand her up like a giant sausage and wrap my arms under her arm pits and try to get her to walk on her back legs. Before it was all done it was me picking up a tree branch that motivated her into walking again. Big naughty girl. That is how we started our day.

Maybe I should add I only used the tree branch like a shepherds hook to guide her back with, she was not beaten with it...

HoneyBelle: Oh Nooo! She really beats me!

Sally Sleeping Beauty Contest

We missed it. Yes, I was wasting my time working at my paying job that keeps our lights on and dog food flowing. So HoneyBelle voted for Fred the Bloodhound in Austin, TX. http://www.houndgirl.com/

I wanted to share her Dali muse pose. Martha and Bailey affectionately called her "rubenesque." Hope I spelled that right. We are rooting for you Fred! Go Go Go!

Cannibal Baby Heads

I have a sick sense of humor. And so does HoneyBelle with the naughty pranks she pulls on me. I thought it would be genius to put a bunch of cheap baby doll heads on some rebar stakes in the bamboo garden to have as a conversation piece. Well, the first conversation was my sister threatening to have me committed. Then HoneyBelle made her contribution. I thought "what is that white stuff wafting through the yard??" Lord if it wasn't polyester baby doll guts. EVERYWHERE. She pulled open the trash bag and scored big points. I even had to chase her down and pull stuffing out of her mouth. So I did what a good keeper does, get the rake and start raking. I hesitated posting this because we just went through August and grass does not survive Gulf Coast Texas heat. So yes my yard is dirt where it is not landscaped. Augh.

HoneyBelle: I thought it was pretty cool to make some snow in Texas...

Reliant Energy Dog Show part II

Okay, press agent fell out for a while. Here are a few photos of the very long weekend. HoneyBelle did a combo of representing both Basset Buddie Rescues and Greater Houston Basset Club. It kind of went like this:

HoneyBelle: Something is up, I am trussed up like a holiday ham with a cupcake confection wrapped around my neck.

Mother/press agent: You have the size and coloring of a large ham.

HoneyBelle: You will pay for this infraction...


HoneyBelle: I am positive I did not sign up for this. Is this hay on my tongue?

Mother/press agent: Well you are the size of a cow. Hurry up, we have to get over to Meet the Breed so you can show everyone what a gorgeous example of bassetitude you are. Here, change your outfit again.

HoneyBelle: Can we take her home?

Mother/press agent: No way in hell.

Mother/press agent: Look HoneyBelle-it is Tiny The Show Basset! And why won't you get on the floor with the other dogs?

HoneyBelle: You can't be serious. I am NOT a dog. Or is it DAWG today. hehe.

HoneyBelle: I cannot feel my legs anymore. And where is my couch. Whose idea was it to install large chunks of shredded grass to get comfortable on?

Mother/press agent: You have legs? Sorry, I could not resist. I will take it up with the committee on your behalf. Next year I will be sure to have your loveseat dollied in.

Mother/press agent: aawwwww. My baby is plumb wore out. It has been a full day of petting. Lets get you on your loveseat. She did so well in such a large event with people/kids everywhere.


Nite Nite HoneyBelle. We love you!

HoneyBelle: I know where she put 3 new skeins of yarn for her project...

Kilroy

I came around the corner and saw her watching me like this. I just LOVE her big moon pie feet. The pooling jowl is a nice look for her also. I took her photo and then gave her a big smooch.

The September Issue

Yes, our big tub of love made The September Issue of The Bark. I actually submitted this photo one year ago so they have a lot of catching up to do. And I could not resist punning off of Vogue magazine, and the hysterics they go through for the issue this month.

Sorry about the posts slowing again. I get nerve block pain shots this Tuesday so I hope to get some part of my energy back when they take effect. HoneyBelle still savages my yarn basket, pulls fabric down in my art studio, demands to be kissed, takes up my entire couch for her beauty rest, and sasses me with abandon. I love her.

Mi Amor

Ohh la la-I loovvveee your perfume!

I dropped HoneyBelle off to get spayed today. I cried when I left her. I am such a big goober.

Reliant Energy Dog Show

HoneyBelle worked the Reliant Energy Dog Show this year. I was not sure if she would go flat with all the noise and attention, or rally and take it. Our baby took it like a champ! Then to top it off-she worked into the early morning hours treeing an opossum like a true hound. She attended the Meet The Breed forum and showed the public what a wonderful breed Basset Hounds are. I have more delightful pictures and will get them loaded in the next day or two. HoneyBelle rocks!

The Guest House, Play House, Cabana...

These are a few of the monikers my camper is being called. My neighbors across the street use less than friendly terms. So I moved it from the driveway to the back yard and leveled it on blocks and have started landscaping around it. It is a cool vintage silver 1970 slide in camper made by the Avion family (that needs the interior restored). I locked the dogs up in the kennel while I was trying (not) to kill myself getting it off the truck and leveled. As soon as I finished I turned the dogs out. HoneyBelle being the "Oh is it for ME?" personality ran to it immediately. I had the door opened for her and she climbs in and gives it a 10 point inspection. She checks out closets and climbs up on the table/seats. She approves.

I wonder if I can find a pair of mama's eye glasses in here...

Maybe she has some eye glasses up here...

Whew, that wore me out. I better take a nap.


Lukie the corgi says "Hey-let's GO GO GO!"

Crumbs In Bed

I heard a lite "clunk clunk" and saw her walking from the kitchen to the loveseat/dogbed with her snack bowl. She climbs up and eats her snack while laying in bed. She is so funny-I ask her if she enjoyed her snack and took her picture.

Bassett Intelligence

This is a comment that frequently pops up on The Drool. Some trainer in The Dog World makes a comment about bassets being dumb. Well. HoneyBelle isn't, that is for sure. This morning as I was leaving for work I get a phone call from the woman that owns the fitness gym behind me. HoneyBelle is in the air conditioned gym with the morning workout group. God only knows where the other two knot heads are. I run inside, grab three leads and run out the back gate. I can hear the cacaphony a block over and discover KORGEE and Ruby running a neighbors fence line-taunting the still secured pets. I snatch those two and head over towards the gym where HoneyBelle is relaxing in air conditioning. I thank the owner, put renegade 3 on a lead and we walk back to the house. By this time I have completely sweat through my work clothes and ran a blister on the right foot from running in sandals. Sure enough-I found the compromised hole and fix it. Thank God it is Friday.

Pillow Top Mattress

My house is full of antiques (or old crap depending how you look at it). My bedframe is a golden oak job from the 30's. I made extensions on the frame so it would accommodate my full size box springs and mattress. Well, when you stack it all up, the mattress comes up to my hip and that is way to tall for dogs to get off or on. So I hang my leg or arm off the bed to do head and ear scratches. Last night I picked HoneyBelle up (which I try not do any more) and put her on the bed. Ohhh did she like the pillow top. I thought she would freak out from the height so I was prepared to grab her if she tried to launch. Well, no danger there, I could not get her off. She was literally slapping my grasps away with all four feet. And her 60 pounds increased to 80 pounds. There has got to be a math formula for how bassets can increase their weight when they don't want to move. I had to wrestle her off the bed.

Camera charger coming this weekend-will get back to sharing photos!

HoneyBelle Hit List

Add a baby opossum to her growing kill list. I had no idea-I literally almost stepped on it. I noticed her guarding an area in the yard and I walked over to investigate. Was not prepared for the latest "find." Probably a good thing she chewed the camera charger, these posts are getting morbid. I cannot wait to get her started in a tracking program, I think she will kick ass.

HoneyBelle - I like my outdoor stuffees!

HoneyBelles Pet Corgi

I like my KORGEE. He went away, then came back and mama would not let him play. Said he had SURJEREE. But yesterday he came out to play and did we have fun! I showed him how to dig oranges out of the compost and play a game I made up called ORANGE TAG. I am good because I can hold a whole orange in my mouth and no one knows I have it. Except mama, she says my flabber jabbers can't cover everything (brought up her cell phone again). I need to find another baby bird. Yes Martha and Bailey-they are just like STUFFEES! They have a squeeker in them. I hope you find a baby bird, I really liked mine and would not share-oh no!

Mama-HoneyBelles pet corgi has recovered from his neutering, will be groomed and pay a visit to his Marines this week. We are excited. Sorry about no photos, SOMEONE chewed the camera charger...

The Cycle of Life

is much shorter if you happen to be a baby bird on the ground with three dogs. I will spare the gore, but let you know it was our pretty HoneyBelle that had a paw in baby blue jay's demise. The parent was squawking above our heads and by gosh she wasn't going to spit it out, drop it, leave it. The closer I got to trying to open her jaws the tighter she'd clamp, joyfully hopping and showing it off to Ruby. Ruby would get too close and a deep "eeeeeerrrrrrmmmpphhhhh" would growl from her chest. My damn bird, go get your own. She is all hound.

Jan Loves Molly

I am a fiber artist-when not having to work full time elsewhere. My friend Jan had this photo of her pit mix, Molly, as her screen saver. Every time I came by her desk I was fascinated with the portrait-contrast, color, her joy,etc. Plus I had this crazy muddy print fabric that would work as her brindle coat. I had Jan email me the photo and I crafted this likeness of Molly on fabric. I have so many ideas on how to do HoneyBelle, if I ever found honey colored velvet or velveteen I would buy it to make her with it. I need to get my son's quilt going. I am behind, as always it seems.

"THE" Waddle of all Waddles.

Oh My Goodness! Doesn't this look just like our gorgeous HoneyBelle? Or even Tina's Honey Dew! And squishy looking too. Some day we may be able to attend The Waddle, but we are on the opposite end of the United States for it. I cannot imagine more fun, bassets everywhere.

Baby Brother

HoneyBelle here. Mama brought home something called a KOR-GEE from RESKU. He looks like a little collie with no legs. I like him. He lets me stand on him, smush him, chase him, pinch him. I like him. I showed him my fancy jump-whip-snap-bunny hop. Mama laughed and and snorted her tea out her nose. She is gross sometimes. Mama won't let Ruby play with him yet, says she will fang him. So he is all mine. Until tomorrow. He gets NEW-TURD.

HoneyBelle Turns One

Today is her first year birthday! HoneyBelle marked her birthday by snatching the squirrel that Ruby caught and *eating* it. She did this with great joy. I only caught the last part of the carnage. It makes me think that she may be good in tracking the way she went after the squirrel. She is a hound after all.

I have fallen behind on her stories-my migraines are trying to whip my ass. I started a shot regime yesterday that seems to really work and the fog of pain is trying to lift. Hope to be back with our hound pack this coming week.

Happy Birthday HoneyBelle!

Reality Check

Well that will teach me. I bragg and then get put in my place. She decided she wanted IN the house when I left to get groceries. She ripped the cover of the doggie door off and bulldozed her way inside and pillaged the 2 bathrooms of toilet paper. That is only one pile. It goes over on to her chair, another pile in my studio. You see the Nylabone lying in the fluffy pile of tissue. She wasn't interested in a dog bone, god forbid. I have tried stuffies but Ruby shred's their brains out in short time. I think HoneyBelle could be worked into a Charmin marketing campaign instead of the dancing bears. It is hard for me to scold her with a stern face-she is so darn cute. And heavy, I need to get her weighed again. She has got to be over 50 pounds.

From the archive:

Gifted Class

Who would have thought-not only is my baby beautiful, she is smart! She started Beginning Obedience 2 weeks ago and each class has been amazing. She sits. She stays. She heels (for the most part). I get so excited I start squealing and giving her kisses. Now I know that is not part of the curriculum, but nobody has told me to stop. In fact, the Australian Shepherd next to us keeps trying to get me to play with him. "Look at the Crazy Dog Lady, Dad-she is giving out squeals and kisses!" I told my sister I have crossed over to The Dog Lady side. I gained weight, wear more comfortable clothes and shoes, and there is dog hair always wafting off of me. And I got rid of a no-good-man. Life is so much better!

Wednesday night was the Houston Basset Hound Club meeting. We made a 4 month calendar of basset events and listed upcoming events to attend. In 2 weeks we are doing a "puppy class" for our youngsters. We will set up a ring with a ramped judging box and simulate the judging ring. Work on having strangers handle our hounds and work on ground manners. I will have some good pictures to share. This will be a lot of fun! We are also going to ask a trainer to give us a tracking demo for our hounds. That is my goal this year, to keep HoneyBelle in school and see if she can earn some titles. I am so proud of her, can you tell?

Westminster 2010!

Congratulations Ch. Blossomhil's Mamma Mia! What an exquisite hound-as my friend says it is that Topsfield and BumperCar dna. Her father won 2 years ago @ Westminster. She is amazing to watch in the ring. I hope to attend Westminster at least once before I leave this earth. What a joy that would be. Cannot wait to share the news with HoneyBelle-she will be pleased. Girls rock!

Salvador Dali Basset

I walked in the living room and found her laid out in her chair like this. Never a dull moment. This is her Dali muse pose.

Wet Dog

We had a warm spell this week and I decided to put in HoneyBelle in the bathtub for a mid-winter bath. I doubt I will ever do that again. I have not bathed her in the tub since she had another growth spurt. It was like putting a bear cub wrapped in a loose velour blanket in water. I had to keep my legs either wrapped around her or stretched across the edge to keep her from jumping. She has an impressive neck roll-like an elizabethan collar-and trying to get all the exess skin folds, rolls and thick coat wet, lathered, and rinsed was almost more than I can handle. Honestly, it is easier to wash a horse than a fat-wet-pissed-off basset. I wish there was a second person there at the house to 1) take pictures of the two fat women wrestling and 2) HELP.

I get her rinsed and outside she is gorgeous, a big orange rolling log charging around the yard. I tell her to step up on the bench for her brushing. The amount of hair that comes off her is amazing. I pull out 7 orange sherbert colored brushfulls and put the hair in the garden, hoping the wrens will use the down for their nests. Next time I will spend the $30 to send her to the groomer. She looks like spun honey gold in the sun.

Me Love You Long Time!

Be still my heart-my boy has arrived!! Will he notice me?


Can he see me?


Put the phone down and pay attention to me. You don't need to talk to her.


I think I will check him for fleas. I love my boy.


Note from mama: She cries and warbles like a preteen girl when he shows up. It is comical. I had to hold Ruby so she would not get crushed in the melee.

Basset Obedience (oxymoron?)

I just signed HoneyBelle and I up for an Obedience class in Houston @ www.hotdogclub.org. She is now 50+ pounds and needs direction-other than the counter. I would have done this long before now but my life of migraines has almost debilitated me. I started a new (very expensive) drug that is giving me a reprieve so I am trying to play catch up with my life. This facility trains for AKC points and is professionally ran, offering instruction and trials in tracking to conformation. This will be an exciting year for HoneyBelle!

Her Favorite Toy

Just like a child, you buy them gifts and they go play with the box. I finally had to break down and start buying the awful Scott tissue. I wonder if she can tell? I am pretty good about keeping the bathroom doors shut, but I do slip up and she scores the tp roll. I pray everyone out in internet land had a safe and happy holiday season. I left the girls in the capable hands of a pet sitter and I went to northern Kansas to visit family. Sweet Jesus, we hit -3 degrees. It was painful to even breathe air that cold. But it was wonderful to sled with the grandkids, and see the land asleep under blankets of snow. Lets have a good 2010.