Happy New Year!

Happy New Year, Furiends!

Since Puddles Mentioned It...

Furiends. We, the MilShelb, are 6 years old. We will be 7 in April. In our (almost) 7 years we have moved 6 times. This move will be our 7th (if our house ever sells). Let us explain.

You see, our pawrents are (fairly) young. Well, ok, not anymore but they were when they brought us home. They were not even married or lived in the same home or even engaged when we came around... but they knew they needed us, for sure! So, when we first came home we lived with Mom and her roomie and 2 cats. Mom and Dad were both in college.

Next we moved in with Dad a couple of months after we first came to Mom's house. Then we moved back with Mom but in another house when she moved to a place by herself after her roomie got married. 

Finally Mom and Dad got married and we all go to live together and we moved to a different place (a house with a fenced in yard finally) and a different town (the town where Gma and Gpa live).

Then, Mom and Dad couldn't find jobs there so we moved back to our town after Mom found a job there. (That's house number 5.) That was a rental house, too.

Now, we live in a house our pawrents bought and were told it was our forever house... But not so fast. Because Dad gots a job where Gma and Gpa live now and we are stuck here with just Mom a lot. (Dad comes home randomly for a day or two here and there and as often as he can.) When the school year is over (Mom's a teacher-remember) we will all (hopefully, if the house sells) be moving into our 7th (and better be final) house together. Phew!

Lots of moving!

It's crazy! They asked us what we want in our next house and we said a big yard and a big house. We will let you know how they deliver on that request. 

In case you forgot how cute I am, here's one of me taking a nap today next to my Mom. :)

Having Fun!

Furiends. We can't remember if we told you, so of we did we will tell you again... We are selling our house and moving. We are excited! Did you know that when you sell your house you cannot be there when the strangers come to see it?? Isn't that just the strangest thing? I mean, Mil and me spend our whole day keeping strangers out and our Mom is just letting them in! She says people won't buy a house they can't see first. (This from the lady who moved us to Florida for a day to live in a house she only saw on the computer before she rented it...) Anywho, Mom takes us out of the house when these people come and we get to go to Petsmart. So, Friday that is what we did. We went to Petsmart and I (Shelby) pooted so bad I stunk up the store and Mom said she was "mortified". What an exaggeration! She was just embarrassed because people probably thought it was her! Uh, sorry Mom but I did just have an operation on my booty. Gah!

Happy Birthday, Mom!

There's only one person I love more than myself (or Milly or Daddy) and that is my Mama! Today is Mom's birthday. 

Happy Birthday, Mom!

I love you and Milly and Daddy do, too!

Happy Birthday Grandmama!

Today is our Grandmama's 83rd birthday. Our Grandmama is actually our great grandmother, but we call her Grandmama. 

Here's me and Grandmama on Christmas!

Here's my Mom and Grandmama earlier this year. 

We love our grandmama!!

Christmas

On the way to Gma and Gpa's house! 

Before we left we got to open our gifts from Santa. The pictures are blurry because there was so much excitement!

We got some great stuff! We got 2 Nylabones each, a bag of Greenies, a Minnie Mouse, a Fozzy Bear, a new Dachshund toy each, and some other odds and ends. :) Mom says that she and Santa must have a different definition of "good." Whatever. She's just jealous!

At Gma's we each got another Nylabone and a toy. Milly got a new pink puppy (thank goodness) and I got the crunchy brown cow toy that you put water bottles in. I love it!

We had lots of fun at Gma and Gpa's and Mom spent most of her time trying to keep me calm. I did pretty good, though!

Mom forgot my medicine at Gma's so after we got all the way home (1 hour and 15 minutes trip) she had to go all the way back and get it. She was super annoyed! 

Anyhow, overall it was a great Christmas! Mom even got this super cute sleep short that says "sleeps with dogs". We will post a picture of that later. We also have more pictures from Christmas at Gma and Gpa's to share another day. 

Shelby update: Shelby is doing well. She hasn't been able to wear the cone much but that's ok because (I) Mom has (have) been home. She figured out how to take it off! What an escape artist! Anyhow, her stitches are still ok and are the dissolvable kind. She hasn't even really tried to lick, which is great! When she has even looked like she was going to we stopped her. We will keep you posted. I am very hopeful that this surgery will be the end of this craziness with her anal gland. Poor girl!! 

She's Home

She's home!! She was such a diva at the vet that they moved her from a small kennel to a big one because Mom told them she isn't used to being crated and maybe that was the problem. Then, she was still "chatty " with them so the surgeon finally climbed in the kennel with her to get her to calm down! What a brat!

Here's Mom:

She was thrilled to be on the way to get Shelby!

Mom gave in and took the cone/collar off for now because Shelby kept crying and looked so tired. Now she's sleeping on Mom's lap. They said she basically needs to be on bed rest so that's what she's doing. They also said she needs to go potty on a leash. That should be funny because Shelby hates being on a leash. 

Wish us luck!! Thank you for your thoughts and kind words.

And Merry Christmas to everyone!

The Surgeon Called

Mom here: The Surgeon called a couple of hours ago. She got through the surgery fine and was resting. We can't pick her up until tomorrow. The surgeon basically said it was a mess in there from all the ruptures so she only removed the one gland. That's ok though because the other one is healthy and hasn't had any problems. We are excited to see her tomorrow and should have her and her cone home by noon. 

Here's Milly... Missing Shelby

Shelby Update

Shelby is having surgery and we can't pick her up until tomorrow. We will let everyone know when we hear from the surgeon. 

Today's The Day

Today is the day we go to see the surgeon. We will keep everyone posted on Shelby's progress if they decide to do the surgery or let you know if they have another solution. Poor Mom is being a crazy person all worried but Shelby isn't worried. The only thing I (the Milly) am worried about is being stuck here again with Mom all day by myself. This lady will worry the mud out of you! 

This is my worried face.

Shelby's chillin'. She's not worried!

A Book Review

Now, you may be wondering how we, The MilShelb, could possibly review a book. We do know how to read, ya know! Plus, we can always get our Mom to read it to us. But- this book doesn't require reading!
Here's the scoop:

Title: SHAKE
Photographer: Carli Davidson

The cover looks like this:

Here is a sample page:

When we received the book we immediately wanted to look inside of it because of the cover. The cover is one that just grabs your attention! When you open the book it is full of photographs of dogs shaking off. The photos in this book are so funny! Mom and Dad laughed and laughed at the shaking dogs. Some photos have lots of drool and some have fur flying all over the place. Mom was talking about how cool it is to see what a still photo of a dog shaking off looks like. It is pretty neat. At the back of the book there is a note from the photographer about the process and a place where she has thanked the models. 

As you flip though the book you will see that what we really like is that there are all sorts of dogs. There are dogs in wheel-chairs, dogs with missing legs, dogs of all sizes, shapes, and colors. This book is so much fun!

Near the very end of the book there is a note about pet adoption. You know that is near and dear to our hearts. We believe in animal adoption (though we were not adopted from a rescue) and were pleased to see that 70% of the dogs in this book are rescues. We also believe in spaying/neutering your pets and we love that the photographer advocates for that. 

This is a great book that would make a wonderful gift for a dog-lover. Maybe you want to buy it for your pawrents! If you'd like to pick up a copy and your pawrents are like our pawrents, they can find it on amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Shake-Carli-Davidson/dp/0062242644

You can also find it at Barnes and Nobel as well as BooksAMillion. 

There's more information on the book's website: http://www.shakethebook.com/

You can preview some of the images on Carli Davidson's website: http://carlidavidson.photoshelter.com/gallery/Shake/G0000s_trsF9CDFI

Oh Christmas Tree

Merry Christmas! This is our Dachshund tree. Mom's Secret Santa got us a new ornament for it. I was so excited! We found out that her Secret Santa is Ms. Lori. Thank you, Ms. Lori! We love our new ornament and all of the other goodies you got for Mom. 

Milly and Daddy

Queen Shelby

Milly's Turn!

Howdy Folks! Shelby finally put down the phone so me- the Milly- could say hello. She's such a phone hog!! This is a picture of me and my Mama last weekend. I'm pretty excited it's Christmas break real soon! I get to run in and out all day long and get Mama to play ball with me! Our new routine is that as soon as Mom comes home we go out in the yard and I let her throw the ball a whole 5 or 6 times before I get mad at her and try to bite her fingers. She's getting the hang of it. It's taken me nearly 6.5 years but I've finally gotten her almost trained! Phew! Anyone else have a Mom who is hard to train?

Hanging Out

So in one picture we look creepy and the other one is dark and hard to see, but Mom wanted to share anyhow.

Hope everyone had a happy Monday! Today is our Dad's bday. He's 28! In dog years he'd be dead. BOL!

Some Not-So-Great News

Mom here:

Unfortunately the last surgical procedure for Shelby didn't work as we'd hoped. Yesterday the ruptured gland opening opened again. It is so frustrating because I just want her to feel better. We have been dealing with this off and on for a long time. It's just not fair to Shelby. 

I called and spoke to our vet. He has proven to be amazing through all this! He said that he feels that we have exhausted all of our options and that now the best option is to have a consultation with a surgeon to have the gland removed. Our vet does not do this particular surgery. He has referred us to a surgeon in our area and they called yesterday to talk with the surgeon's office, fax over paperwork, and set everything up. Then, the surgeon's office called me to schedule an appointment. I tried very had to make my schedule work to go next week, but it is the week before Christmas Break and I really don't need to take any days off. So, Shelby and I will be taking ourselves over there bright and early the week after next. Yes, the week of Christmas. If they decide that she does need the surgery they will operate the same day. So, it will be an interesting Christmas Break to say the least. 

I just want Shelby to be better. I will keep everyone posted about what the surgeon says and what will be done. 

Please keep your paws crossed and say a prayer for my sweet girl. 

Here she was last night, laying on her Daddy's lap. She loves cuddle time! 

Treat Review

We (The MilShelb) got the opportunity from Chewy.com to review Honest Kitchen treats. We got the Honest Kitchen Smooches Chicken and Cranberry. Yum! Yum! Yum! We love these treats. They are heart shaped and smell good and we beg for more and more and more.

If you want to send your person, here's what they look like:

If you want to send your person, here's what they look like:


And here's where you can order them:
http://www.chewy.com/dog/honest-kitchen-smooches-chicken/dp/35485

From the Mom (Because she says that other Moms want to know what Moms think... yeah right.):

These treats have healthy ingredients. What I like about the ingredients is that I actually know what the things are! Imagine that! They are wheat-free and only 2.3 calories per treat, which is great for Milly because she has food allergies and is supposed to eat foods that are low in fat.

The MilShelb Dad even noticed how much the girls like these treats. Milly and Shelby are all about their desert after dinner, but tonight he mentioned that he'd noticed they really like these in particular.

New Blankie? Yes please!

Well furiends, our Mom works at a school. She's a teacher. At her school they have Secret Santa with the teachers. Her secret Santa has really spoiled her! Today she brought home a warm, fluffy, cuddly blanket. It is wonderful. Heaven in a blanket, I tell ya! 

I love this blanket! Mom keep yelling at us because we tried to take it. I think I won!

Hanging Out

Milly is hiding! Lol!

Me and mom on the couch. I love to cuddle!

Pumpkin Pie

Dad always calls Milly "Pumpkin Pie Apple Eye" and right now I could really go for some pumpkin pie. Not Milly, but the pie on his plate. Yum! Hand it over, Dad!

Surgery Update From Mom

Mom here: Last night we thought maybe the surgery wouldn't work and maybe it still won't but right now Shelby's rear end is looking much better than it has in a long time, so I am hopeful! After speaking to our vet last night we learned that she has some scar tissue that may be causing the problem. Right now we are just waiting to see if it heals correctly and stays healed. Lately it would heal for a couple of weeks and then open again, repeat, repeat, repeat. No fun! Our vet said that if that continues the gland will have to be removed. If that happens we will talk to a surgeon and find out more information. I have learned that as long as the surgery is done correctly it should not effect her quality of life. I just want my baby girl to finally be all better! We will keep you posted as things progress. :)

I'll leave you with one of my favorite pictures of my girl: 

Shelby Update

We know you've all been waiting on pins and needles (figuratively-yikes that would hurt in real life) to hear about Shelby. We went to pick her up a little after 3 this afternoon and we were so happy to see her! She was still very sleepy. I (Milly) was so excited to see her I peed on the floor. Bahaha! 

We have her home now and she is resting. The vet was able to clean out some gunk from her anal gland and we hope it will close up on its own and heal correctly. The vet did say that there was some scar tissue that may be causing the problem. So, now we wait. 

Milly on the way to get Shelby

Shelby was ready to go home

Mom was excited to take her girl home!

Shelby cried and cried and Milly was worried.

Now Shelby is sleeping and cuddling on the couch. 

Adoptable Dogs. Homeless Dogs.

Furiends,
We all know that this time of the year is super fun. It is filled with yummy cookies, family visits with lots of belly rubs, and new toys! We spend time cuddling with our families and enjoying fires in fireplaces. (Ok, this is something I see on tv. Here in good ol' SC it's still pretty warm!) Anyhow, we have tons of fun things to look forward to, but not everyone does. Did you know there are other dogs (yes, even Dachshunds) who are homeless? Even for the holidays! It makes me, the Milly, very sad. It also makes me hopeful that, with it being the holidays, they will find homes. Have you ever looked at Adopt-a-Pet.com? There are TONS of adoptable dogs! Now, I know there's some of you out there who would LOVE a new brother or sister for Christmas. Just tell your parents.
We (me and Shelby) were contacted by the good people at Adopt-a-Pet.com to post some dog info in our blog. Of course, this whole homeless pets thing is something near and dear to our hearts. Shelby and I were never homeless. We were born in a home where we were loved and our birth was an exciting time. We were given to our Mom and Dad by our Dad's parents to take care of. Our parents were thrilled to have us! We are some of the few lucky ones. We have never known what it is like to not be loved. We don't know what it is like to be alone or neglected or afraid of our humans. Our humans only speak to us with love and only touch us with care. They feed us (sometimes even on command) and play with us. We sleep in the big bed at night. Not everyone is that lucky.
This year has been a crazy year for us and we won't be adding to our family any time soon, but when we do our Mom and Dad plan to adopt our new sister and can use adoptapet.com to find them!

Looking for a Dachshund Dog or Puppy? Why Not Adopt!

Sweet Sisters

Our Dad calls us "sister sister". We are pretty sweet sisters... Most of the time. Sometimes we fight but all sisters do.

Think of Me, Please

Furiends, please think of me- the Shelby. I have to have a "surgical procedure" on Wednesday. I have been having problems with my (this is soooooo embarrassing) anal glands, one in particular. It ruptured and then won't close up and keeps opening again. So, they're going in to try to flush everything out and see if there is scar tissue or what is causing the problem. Hopefully this will work! I am ready to be better. I've included a picture of me looking pitiful. (Just so you know, I normally act just fine. I was just trying to pull one over on Mom and make her feel bad for me!)

It's Good to be a Gamecock!

Our parents went to the University of South Carolina. (They're brilliant people, we tell ya!) They love the Gamecocks! Ok. Ok. Dad loves the Gamecocks more than any person should love a football team and Mom loves when they win because Dad is happy and a happier Dad is much better than a grumpy one. Last night the Gamecocks played Clemson. Now, if you're from around here then you know it's either USC or Clemson and in this house we detest orange. We all stayed up ( even Shelby- who doesn't give a toot about football) to watch the game together. As usual, Dad was hootin' and hollerin' and I (Milly) was making faces...

Here's me being concerned about the yelling. 

But it was all worth it because the Gamecocks WON!! Go Cocks!

By the way, I wonder who Puddles Duddles Rainwater likes... I'm betting it's Clemson. :(

OMD! Blogger App!

Folks. Our super silly Mommerson had NO clue there was an app for this. She was so excited tonight when she found it she squealed! Well, furiends. I'm all like, "duh Mommerson! There's an app for everything!" Silly Mom.

Here's me and my super shocked (and totally sarcastic) face!

I'm just glad we will finally be posting more often. :)

Food!!

Mom saw this on Facebook. She thought it was too funny! Even though this pup looks more like me, it thinks more like Milly. Milly's belly is like a clock. She knows exactly what time it is! :)

Study Buddies

I am Mom's study buddy most days. Milly just wants to play ball. No studying for Mil.

Short and Adorable

Bahahaha! This is so us!!

Hug Pawty (for Benny!)

We wanted to participate in Benny's virtual hug PAWTY!!

Here's me and Mom. Mom loves hugs and so do I. She laughs when I climb up on her shoulder and she calls me her parrot! Silly Mom. I'm obliviously a DACHSHUND!

All about ME?

Hmmm... It appears this blog is all about me this week. Oh well. Maybe Milly should get off her lazy booty and type up a post!

Anyhow, here's me and Mom again. I love my Mama! :)

If I Didn't Have a Dog

Mom found this on Facebook and LOVED it. I decided to let her share since it sounds like maybe she likes me. BOL!!



If I Didn't Have A Dog 

If I didn't have a dog I could walk around the back yard barefoot without worry. My house could be carpeted instead of tiled. My clothing, furniture and other belongings would be free of hair.

When the doorbell rings, my home wouldn't sound like a kennel. I could sit on the couch or lie in my bed the way I want to, without taking into consideration how much space she needs to be comfortable. I would not have strange presents under the Christmas tree like bones, stuffed animals, toys and treats...nor would I have to explain why I wrap them.

I would have no guilt about going on vacation. I would not be on a first name basis with three veterinarians, as I put their kids through college. The most used words in my vocabulary would not be sit, stay, down, come, go pee pee.

My house would not be cordoned off into zones with baby gates and barriers. My pockets would not contain things like poop bags, treats, and an extra leash. My house wouldn't look like a daycare center with toys strewn everywhere. I would not have to spell out the words, BALL, Treat, bye-bye, walk.

If I didn't have a dog.... how truly empty my life would be.

Spoiled Baby

Please excuse the fact the my mommerson decided to take her make up off before this photo was taken. (Eww.) I wanted to show you what a spoiled baby I am!