Chicken Jerky Warning!!!

I know it's been a while. okay a few weeks since I last posted. but gimme a break i have been busy with work, school, and my research project. i did do a lot of fun stuff in between, but i will tell you about it in a later post.
Right now Mindy is in the ICU fighting to get her kidneys jumped started. ruben took her to emergencey monday night and after a few blood and urine samples it turn out she has kidney failure. what was the cause you ask...chicken jerky we bought at costco. a treat that shows 'chicken' as it's only ingredient. we researched the web and found out that there are oodles of people out there who's dog got ill and were diagnosed with kidney failure after feeding them the same treats. unfortunately there were some who passed. so why did i feed my dogs these? THEY WERE NEVER RECALLED! the fda never recalled them even though they had hundreds of complaints and a study done by banfield hospitals. you can go to costco and other stores and they are on the shelves. go figure. i would advice anyone who is feeding there dogs or cats to check the label out carefully. we through out EVERYTHING that had any ingredients from china away. we will start making them food and treats ourselves.
As for Mindy...she is fighting. her kidneys will never function 100%, but at least she will be with us. to let you know how bad she was...the doctor only sees those types of results after a pet drank antifreeze. she is constantly getting kidney flushes and dialysis. here is our little tank.

Strike a Pose!

Last night my Sonya came over to cheer me up and see the pup's. After watching America's Next Top Model with us (ANTM is my guilty pleasure) Kodos and Sonya decided to show off their modeling/acting skills as a goofy pair. Here are some pics of the two:

They are so good together don't you think...Doesn't it seem as if Kodos is listening to the photographer's instructions? Well he isn't. He is listening to Auntie Sonya instead.

How cute is this...they are both in sync with each other.

Kodos is saying: Yeah, she's my peep!

Foster puppies growing up

The past week I have been busy shelling corn. I was shelling during the weekend and will be in the lab early monday morning to do more.
On another note. I got an e-mail from one of the people who took in 2 of our foster puppies and here is the story on her two pups from when we received them last October to foster to when she took them home and how they have impacted her life:
So Ruben and I foster for the local animal shelter. In October we received a litter of 5 husky mixes. Oh so cute and small.

There were 2 females (who we named Cindy(the light brown/white/red on the right side near Ruben's hand and the other little female Jan (cute little brown/white/black one on the lower left side). We named this litter after the Brady bunch. The males were named: Bobby, Peter and the last male was originally Greg, but we changed it to Gizmo.

We got the pups home and they were covered with ticks. when i say covered i mean COVERED. it took ruben and i 3 straight hours to de-tick 5 tiny dogs that weighed a few ounces each. some of them fell asleep while we picked ticks off. Jan (currently named Dolly) became very ill. we started bottle feeding her and tried to keep her hydrated, but she was just too ill. when Ruben took her back to the shelter for care, they told us they weren't sure she would make it.
the other pups were doing great except foe a skin condition. they all recovered from that. here are pictures of the 2 females that were adopted by a wonderful woman named Sandy.
This is Dolly (aka Jan). This is her after her intensive treatment. Is she cute or what.
This is Molly (aka Cindy). She had fur missing from her tail from a skin condition. She still stole our heart...how can she not.

I recieved the e-mail from Sandy with her story and an up-to-date picture of the two girls. When I read the story and saw their picture i cried. i took the picture home and just stared at it...teary eyed. So what has happened to this adorable little girls since getting adopted. Here is Sandy's story:
They are in between 35-40 pounds now, soft and loving and the joy of our lives. Their confirmation is perfect and their gorgeous fur is soft and thick. We found by putting Vit E in their food that the fur grew back that was missing. Husky's have this deficiency according to the Internet and lo and behold it worked. When the fur started to grow out on Molly's tail.... It formed not only a beautiful full tail but she was blessed with a white tip! And, Dolly has the most beautiful paws you would ever want to see.
They do not like collars so we are in the process of getting them used to just wearing one now and the dreaded leash is next. We will start their training on April 5th. Dolly has sit up for treats since she was tiny. Molly has been a little lazy about wanting to do it but found that the morsel in my hand was worth the effort. They love to eat. They also will chew up anything in sight and have learned the word "no" and as a norm will never touch that object again even though I would leave it in plain view to try and tempt them. But, they will find something else even though they have rawhide bones and toys!
Something else that is wonderful.... They are never any further apart than you see them in this picture. When I only see one ... I run to see where the other one could be. My husband is retired but active in a lot of things and I am a Realtor so we have very busy lives and are in and out of the house a lot but there are times when they only have each other. I have never regretted getting Molly even though our family thought that one pup would be enough. But that is another story.
I could go on and on about our little girls. And, I say "our" because without you taking them when you did, I would never have had the opportunity to experience the gift of their love. The girls at the Humane Society were so great in their care.... And then of course my awesome daughter Sherry taking Dolly when she did was almost a miracle in itself. And, for me to see her when I did and just fall totally in love with her just sealed my fate. Sherry presented me with their ownership papers along with colorful collars and leashes, puppy baby books and everything one would need to start life with our new babies for Christmas. What a gift.
Just look at them (Molly in the back, Dolly in the front). Can you see why this picture brings tears to my eyes? This is how i like to see my babies...happy and with such wonderful parents. Sandy has invited us to see the girls and ruben and i are VERY excited. This is what love does. i can't believe how Dolly looks. The last time i saw her she was on the shelter counter and couldn't stand on her own. she fit in my hand. she almost didn't make it.but look at her now.love and care. that's all it takes. i thank everyone who was involved in her recovery and Sandy and her husband for taking these angels in and loving them.
If anyone out there can foster for local animal shelters, do it. this story alone has made it worth it.

Corn cob holders anyone?

So what have I been doing at work lately? I have been shelling corn. yes, corn. To pay for grad school and research expenses I had to keep my job as a research tech working in a plant molecular genetics lab. the lab plants specific maize plants with specific genes of interest during the spring and summer months. next week we have to plant and since it is spring break many of the undergraduates are gone. the only people here are myself and one of my co-workers (who is also a grad student). the only thing, we are both part-timers because of school and work. we have a lot of corn to shell. so what do i do? i have specific corn cobs (corn ears) in which the seeds must be removed, counted, and placed into a labeled envelope. doesn't sound hard right. it isn't. it's just boring. it also gets tedious when you have several different seed colors involved and they have to be separated. my eyes are red from seed strain. i am going home for a quick dinner and i am coming back and staying in the lab late. i will see how much more i can do. after all i have been waking up at 5am and was out doing my own research in the early hours.
some corn ears are fine, others have hundreds of seeds, but the worse ones are the ones like the picture. they are covered in mold. after removing the seeds and counting my hands are a greenish-black.gross.

Sleepy at work

Yesterday I had fun in the afternoon. Went out to the field at 6am (waking up at 5am will be the norm for now on), hurried to seminar, then went "people watching" with an undergrad that works in my lab. We are coffee/people watching buddies. It's fun just sitting around watching people pass by and catch up on life. Got home and had to leave to help out the local shelter during their time of crisis. I was super tired by the time I got home.
Today I worked from home in the morning so I could be with the kids. Played fetch with Hoju. Maggie laid in the sun. Mindy played tug-o-war with me. Barney joined in. And Kodos practiced his guard dog run and growl move. i didn't know he had to practice, but I guess he feels he can better. Called my mom, went to work to do other stuff. Currently at work and I need coffee ASAP before I fall asleep. Can't wait to get home to my kids again. Now that it's warming up Maggie is using the kiddie pool more. I will post pictures of her splashing around. She is a big goober puppy and knows it. She is beautiful, inside and out...like all her other siblings.
I am pretty sure a cot would fit in my office. I will have to look into that.

Bad Days

It's been hectic the past few days. A roller coaster ride I really don't want to be on. Not very happy. Right now I have to say that I do envy singles. I am going to play with Hoju, run from Maggie, Mindy, Kodos, and Barney. That will cheer me up.
How can this not cheer you up?

Puffy dogs

Yesterday we had to take Mindy to the vet. She jumped into bed and Ruben noticed she looked funny (not in a good way). Her eyes were so puffy that they were closing and her muzzle looked the arms of inflatable furniture. She had either eaten or had gotten bit by a bug and was having an allergic reaction. Off to the vet she went to get anti-inflammatory shots. By mid day her swelling was gone and she slept for the rest of the day.
This morning Ruben, myself, and a student I am helping with a project all went out to my field plots to place my bee sticks. How many did we put out today...about 300! Tomorrow we have another 400 to place. I love this time of the year. my field season.