The Ruby Rose and the Big Little Angels 3 Blog

  The prejudice against pit bulls runs deep.  Even knowledgeable pet parents like mine are on high alert when they see one.  After all, Pocket is so tiny; she could be swallowed whole like Jonah.  When our neighbor's son visits his mom with his pittie, my parents avoid taking my sisters out to keep them safe. A mitigating circumstance that contributed to their decision is the number of heroin overdoses that have occurred at the neighbors. Troubled families beget troubled dogs. My efforts to reach out to that pit bull to learn his intentions have been thwarted.  He has blocked my dream visits like I am a can of Spam.  I would prefer to give the big lug the benefit of the doubt; it isn't his fault people in his family have made terrible choices, but until we learn that raising a bloodthirsty pittie was not another terrible choice that they made, my parents must do everything they can to protect their tiny prancers. I have never met a pit bull at the Bridge who wasn't kind,

When I got the message that I was to give the angel oath to a dog named Freddy, I did not think there would be anything special about the encounter.  When I reached Hobo’s Landing, I was surprised that there were so many angels waiting for him.  Was there something about this dog that I was unaware of?     When I saw the newest angel climbing out of the River of Life, I was sure there must be a mistake.  Someone had sent a horse to Doggyspace.  This was going to take a lot of paperwork to fix.  I considered letting him stay with us.  He could give us rides.     When he came closer, I saw that he wasn’t a horse, but a giant dog, the biggest I had ever encountered.   His name is Freddie, a Great Dane who stands seven foot five while on his hind legs, the largest dog in the mortal world during his time.  He would make us unbeatable at basketball.       He bounded up the steps and stopped by my podium.  He was sitting, and I was standing.  I was barely higher than his ankle.  He ope

  Despite having spent several winters exposed to the cold temperatures which invade New England from November to mid-March, River remains a Florida girl at heart.  She hates the cold more than she hates when Pocket tries to sleeping near the top of the bed. Humans don't appreciate what we have to go through just to pee in the morning during cold weather.  We are removed from under the covers where we have burrowed to protect ourselves from the cold.  We are leashed and brought outside without having a chance to wipe the sleep from our eyes.   When outdoors, our paws feel like shoes made of ice, the ground is cold and unforgiving, and we are expected to pee and poop exposed to these horrible elements. I know in the past, humans did not have indoor plumbing. Instead of going out at night in the cold to the outhouse to pee and evacuate, they use what was charmingly called a chamber pot.  Where are the chamber pots for dogs?  Write that down.  It's a million-dollar idea. River i

 

  No one was happier to leave the White House than Melania. 

  Do you snore when you sleep? Do you dream and move your legs like you are running? Do you bark or sleep in your sleep?

\   This is a story about love, devotion, persistence, and the only dog to arrive at Rainbow Bridge via train. It was almost 100 years ago in rural Montana where Shep lived with his father. They did everything together:  An unbreakable pair.  One day Shep's dad took ill. With no way to get to a doctor, Shep's dad hoped to ride it out. Unfortunately, the disease proved to be fatal. When neighbors realized they had not seen the old man for a few days, they found him passed away in bed with Shep resting on the dead man's chest.   Shep's dad had lived back east when he was younger and requested that he be buried in the family plot in New Jersey.  Shep followed the men carrying his father in a coffin to the train station.  When Shep was not allowed on the train, he began to cry.  After the train sped away, people tried to corral Shep, but he ran away.  The next day when the train whistle sounded, Shep ran back to the station and waited for his dad to disembark.  When he d

    Somehow, despite living with two hard-edged dogs like River and me, Pocket is still a sweet pup, sometimes to her detriment. Last week Pocket was outside doing a quick bit of business to make sure her bladder was empty, or at least as empty as a leaky Yorkie can be, when she came across a lone turkey in our back garden. Having turkeys in our yard is nothing new.  A flock of them usually comes by in the morning.  They walk single file behind their leader; something dogs could learn from, and keep pecking the ground until they find sufficient provisions.   The smallest turkey must have taken longer than his siblings to peck. He became lost in concentration. The pack returned to their nest in nearby words leaving the little bird homeless alone.   When my sisters went outside, the bird was sitting by the rose bush’s skeletal remains, shivering.  River did as I would have. She attacked.  Pocket stopped her sister, flashing her few teeth at her.  "We should let him stay in the crawl

  Today we prepared for the arrival of a famous dog.  Pups who had belonged to fire departments on the mortal side lined the path from Rainbow Bridge to Hobo’s Landing because Freckles from Engine 103 in Chicago would be arriving at his forever home soon.     Freckles was a local celebrity.  He took daily walks around the city’s western loop and spent hours on a Yoga mat outside the firehouse, where he greeted visitors.  He was the inspiration for the dog on Chicago Fire.     When Freckles grew bored of sitting in front of the station, he would sniff around the neighborhood, walking into shops, and being greeted like he was a beloved human.  Freckles was featured on a popular Facebook page, and his admirers flocked from around the country to greet him.      When he wasn’t working, Freckles spent his time living with his caretaker Michelle.  She was so devoted to the Dalmation-pit bull mix that he was the “best being” in her wedding.  He dressed in a bow tie and posed for dozens of pict

 

  When you go to a party and realize you are the only one who wore shoes.

Have you ever been in a fight or been attacked?

  I am not sure how to define what a dog's dog is, but I know that Kane is one.   Funny, sweet, lovable, wise, and loyal:  Find an adjective used to describe a  great pup, and it will fit Kane perfectly.   He lived his mortal life on a big farm running freely,  chasing away critters, protecting his property, doing chores, and laughing all the way.  We housebound dogs could only dream of living such a life and did so vicariously through Kane.  A huge crowd gathered at Hobo's Landing when word spread that Kane's arrival was imminent.   We know all dogs have a limited amount of heartbeats, but it seemed like Kane would live forever.  It is impossible to think of his dad's farm without Kane.  I know he is committed to visiting his dad every night in his dreams to give him the guidance Kane has provided since he was a pup to help make the farm successful. His sister  Daisy preceded him to the immortal world and had immediately started her farm where she grew crops and so

  I  stood with Benjamin as we waited for his beloved sister Bella to cross the Bridge.  As soon as a dog passes over, all the pain they felt before their departure from the mortal world disappears.  When Bella started across, we saw what looked like a raw wound on her back, which didn’t heal after she crossed.  “That is strange,” I observed.  “Usually, the  injuries disappear.” “That is not an injury,” Benjamin said.  “It is our mother’s heart.” I  looked closer and saw that Benjamin was right; the wound was in the shape of a heart.  It wasn’t the one that pumps blood throughout the body.  Nothing is charming about that organ.  But, there is a second heart that holds all a soul’s love.  When a dog goes to the Bridge, they  always bring part of their parents’ heart with them (the one that holds  love, not the one that plumps blood.  If that one was taken to the  Bridge, people would quickly follow their beloved pup into the dark.)   But, Bella had brought the entire thing. Bella beg

  I got a request from Pocket to meet in her dreams.  I thought that she was going to complain about River or some other mundane part of her existence.  But when I saw her, she surprised me. "What has happened to our parents?" She inquired. I asked her what she was referring to.  "Remember how it was ten years ago?" she reminisced.  "Everyone was together on one site linked by their love of dogs. Now they are split into two camps, and where people used to comment about their dogs with love and caring thoughts,  they are now attacking what the other parents believe. Why can't we go back the way we were?" It was an excellent question.  I have watched in dismay as many of our friends have shunned others. It has been like watching a family disintegrate. "I always said the old Doggyspace, like other dog social networks sites for dogs, would implode once the person behind the dog became known. People want to give their dogs loving and sweet persona

 

  Kick this seat one more time and we are going to have a problem. Understand?

  What household item freaks you out?

  Bella dawdled. I was stunned when I was informed that my good friend from the big island, from the Downunder Daisy blog, ever since the post’s namesake crossed over, joined us at the Bridge.  I thought she would be romping through Australia for years to come.  My heart immediately went to her family and siblings suffering from an indescribable loss.   When I went to Hobo's Landing to swear in Bella, I saw Daisy already awaiting her.  She told me she was looking forward to taking long walks with her sister again.  That is when we saw Bella crossing with her tail held high.  Then she stopped. She sniffed the grass along the riverbank. She scraped the mud with her dark paws.  She seemed content to dawdle there, unaware of me, her sister, and other friends awaiting her.   Having first-hand experience of Bella's curious nature and love of the long sniff, she barked at her sister to hurry up and join them. After all, we only have an eternity to wait. "Have you checked ou

  Bella vowed to be loyal to her owner, even though he hit her, left her locked outside in cold weather, and fed him heaping amounts of expired Old Roy dog food.  Then came the trip to K-Mart.      Bella was excited to go for a car ride.   She thought it was the perfect opportunity to bond with her dad.  When they reached the plaza, the man got out of the car, grabbed Bella by the scruff of the neck, threw her from the vehicle, and sped off, abandoning the German Shepherd puppy.       Despite the abuse and neglect, Bella still felt like she had failed in her sacred duty, and she was disqualified from having a family again. Bella knew that people would try to woe her to live with them, but she would not let this happen.  She couldn’t fail again.  Bella managed to live in the parking lot and avoid humans for a year.  She experienced one of the harshest winters outside with little shelter.  Bella considered it her punishment for failing her family.      Bella survived thanks to the kin