The Story of Allie and Buddy

The story starts about 5 years ago. I started looking at Golden Retrievers through local rescue groups. I always liked Goldens and thought a Golden would be a good match for my dog Tosi (Tosi went on to the rainbow bridge in November of 03). I later decided not to get a Golden yet, but this was how I started volunteering with a local Golden Retriever Rescue. Through Golden Retriever Rescue and my sister Pat I got involved with Dreamworkers (setting up booths at doggie days).

While I was still a one dog household, my sister’s multi dog household was having trouble in the form of a big brown backyard Houdini named Allie. Allie lived next door to my sister, and was escaping from her backyard everyday. This meant everyday when my sister and brother-in-law went to work they had to put her back in her yard, and every time they came home they had to put her back in her yard. During this time I had met Allie and fell in love with this sweet dog. From then on whenever my sister or brother-in-law would return Allie, and see the neighbors, they would tell them that I would be happy to take Allie and give her a good home. After about a year and trying everything from a electric fence to tying her up to keep her in the yard, my sister’s neighbor told me to pick her up.

It was a good thing I adopted Allie, when I took her to my vet (Dr. Diaz) it was discovered that she had heartworm and a mass cell tumor on her neck. After having her treated and spayed (treatment went well), we started obedience training with Dreamworkers. She was a natural, eager to please and smart. She only had one problem, she was afraid of slick floors (hard wood, tile, linoleum, etc…). Because of this fear, I decided not to pursue therapy work with her. Though she doesn’t do therapy work, she is still active in Dreamworkers (marching in parades, attending the doggie days festivals and helping out at information booths like at the taste of Douglasville).

In December ’03, just a month after Tosi (my Malamute of 11 years) went to the rainbow bridge, a co-worker came to me for help. A neighbor of his was moving to an apartment and couldn’t take their dog Buddy with them. Buddy was an energetic 1 year old Golden retriever pup. My co-worker knew I did volunteer work with a Golden Retriever rescue, so he brought Buddy to me.

After a couple of days at home with Allie and me, it was apparent that Buddy needed some obedience training (he ate my armoire and phone and wouldn’t let Allie sleep). Dreamworkers was on its winter break, so we signed up for Petsmart’s obedience class (I couldn’t wait). In the class I learned that Buddy was very smart, but had the attention span of a gnat. By the graduation of the class his attention span had increased, but it still needed work. After graduation we signed up for the Dreamworkers obedience classes. By the second set of Dreamworkers classes an amazing thing happened, Buddy grew a brain.

With Buddy’s new-found brain, he has been working on becoming CGC certified and competeing in Rally-O compititions.

Will Work for Food

Have you ever walked or drove through a city and saw someone with a sign saying; “Will work for food”? Did you think the person holding the sign was down on their luck? Did you think they needed some help?

That’s what most people think, but not my sisters. They think what a great idea. I have a little brother (actually younger, not littler).

It started off innocent, “would you like to come over for meatloaf, and by the way can you fix my lawn mower?” It is now a blatant will work for food deal, “Can you come over and fix my car, and I’ll feed you.”

The latest, “’will work for food” adventure I had was with my sister Denise. I had called her about an electrical wiring question (she actually knows more about building, renovating or repairing a house than Bob Villa). After she answered my question, she asked if I could come over and help move a TV, “I’ll feed you”. I thought it was a good deal for me, move a TV and get a steak.

When I got over to her house I noticed a big TV sitting on the floor of the basement. I asked her where the TV was going and she told me it was going on the shelf above it. On the shelf above it sat an already big TV (when I asked why she was swapping TVs I was told that the new one had the wide screen format, and that she liked watching movies down there). I asked where the other TV was going and I was told up stairs in the living room. Guess what was already in the living room. Yes, a big TV. I asked where this TV was going and I was told up stairs in the bedroom. Guess what was already in the bedroom. Yes, a TV (at least this one was medium sized). I asked where this TV was going and I was told we could put it in one of the share bedrooms that was used for storage (finally a light at the end of the “TV Musical Chairs” tunnel).

It took about a hour to unhook all the TVs, move them, hook them back up and reprogram their remotes to operate the VCR or DVD they are now attached too (and, by the way, the TV we sat in the spare bedroom for storage was sat next to a TV). I was pretty tired after that, and told my sister that she made out on the deal today. She didn’t think so, because I got fed and as she put it “I got a good work out”, so I wouldn't have to jog tomorrow if I didn't want to.

That’s my family, always looking out for my health.

Angry Man

I was talking to Lisa, my friend I hike with, and she told me that she took her dogs for a walk at the Jake Abbott trail and got yelled at by another patron. She said she moved off the trail with the dogs when anyone was passing, she picked up any poop the dogs did and said a friendly hello to everyone. She couldn’t understand why this man was being so mean and angry with her (personal note: Lisa is a very sweet person and she is also beautiful, so I don’t understand why any man (with a pulse) would be mean and angry to her).

Lockheed Martin owns the property that the trail is on, so they do have a right to ask you to leave. Once you agree to leave and apologize for any problems you may have caused them that should be the end of it. But, the angry man (as I will refer to him from now on) was not content. He got security and threatened to have her arrested for trespassing. The security guards asked her to leave (which she had already agreed too) and she left and went for a hike over by Life College.

I find a few things funny about all of this. The first is that Lockheed Martin promotes on their web-site the community relations and community service it does and then threatens a person from the community with being arrested for walking their dog on a trail.

Wouldn’t it suck to be in jail with a bunch of killers, rapists and thieves and being asked what your in for? I picture the conversation going like this:
Prisoner- What are you in for?
Me- Walking my dog.
Prisoner- Oh, Pit Bulls?
Me- No, A Golden Retriever.
Prisoner- Really? Guess what?
Me- What?
Prisoner- You’re now my bitch.
Going to jail for walking your dog will give you no street cred (gangstas don’t walk Golden Retrievers).

The second thing I find funny is that I can find more out about Lockheed Martin by walking out my front door and looking up as the test pilots buzz my house (and I’m not over the flight path, I think they just get a kick out of buzzing the neighborhood) than I could find out from walkin on their wooded trail.

Third and last is that exercise is suppose to relieve stress and anger. Obviously it is not working for angry man, so instead of yelling at a beautiful woman, he should go to the doctor and get a prescription (I hope Tom Cruise doesn't think I'm being glib).

I think I will go for my run somewhere else, until I can stop by the LockHeed security office and find out what the trail use policy is. I really hope that it was just some yahoo having a bad day, because I really like the trail. It is a good length, it’s close to home and it doesn’t have any loose dogs running around.

Where Did He Learn to Swim

When I first rescued my Lab (Allie), years ago, I took her swimming at Sweetwater State Park. I let her loose in a calm portion of the creek, and she swam like a otter. She was fast with her giant webbed feat and could turn on a dime using her tail as a rudder. She was a natural.

Years later I resued my Golden (Buddy), and took him to a local pond to see if he swam. Buddy loves the water, but was the worst swimming dog I ever saw. He would forget to paddle his rear legs, so his butt would sink and he would start splashing with his front paws. It was funny to watch because he would be snapping and biting at the water he just splashed up in front of him. He was the worst swimming dog I've ever seen (what is more shamful is he's a retriever, a dog designed for the water).

Through the many hikes to rivers, creeks, lakes and ponds one thing stayed the same, Buddy was the worst swimming dog I've seen. This all changed a month ago. On a group hike to Red Top Mountain State Park with Golden Retriever Rescue of Atlanta (GRRA) he started swimming like a champion retriever.

I started wondering how this happened, was he secretly taking swimming lessons while I'm at work? Or, maybe my Lab is teaching him in our bath tub (that would explain why my water bill has gone up).

Last Sunday on anouther group hike with GRRA I verified that Buddy now knows how to swim well. It still baffles me.

Welcome

Welcome to my first blog. If you read the title of the blog, you can guess I'm a fat guy (280lbs) with 2 dogs (a Golden and a Lab). I will be using this blog to chronicle my life with my dogs and how they are helping me get back into shape (other than my current shape of round).

A few months back I started hiking with a group I volunteer with (Golden Retriever Rescue of Atlanta (http://www.grra.com/)). It opened my eyes to how bad of shape I was in. So, I started hiking more. I would hike with a friend and her dogs, and we would check out other trails for the group to hike. So far the group has hiked Chattahoochee National Park, Sweetwater State Park, Red Top Mountain State Park and Tribble Mill Park in Gwinnett County.

My friend also told me about a 1 1/2 mile trail close to my house (it's a great little trail called the Jack Abbott trail, but I always call it the Bell Bomber Loop (it's next to the Bell Bomber park over at Lockheed/Martin)). This trail is so great I started taking both of my dogs on walks there after work.

Because my Lab is old and has arthritis, this 1 1/2 mile trail is a good workout for her. I did notice that if I took her every day, she would start dragging behind on the walks, so I started taking her every other day and TrailRunning with my Golden on days she didn't go.

If I thought the hiking showed me how bad of shape I was in, TrailRunning was the real test of my fitness ( I think I got a D- on that test, and the only reason I didn't get a F was I didn't die). Equipped with my Garmin Forerunner (GPS and HR monitor) I started my TrailRunning. Before I even got 1/2 of a mile I had to stop. My heart was pounding so hard, I think it was trying to escape through my chest. I think if my HR monitor could talk, it would be saying "Danger Will Robinson" in the voice of Robbie the Robot from Lost in Space (remember I'm 40+, I use old references). I got through it by running a little and walking a little. My golden loved it, he pranced next to me as if to say, "You can do it!". His enthusiasm for the run has kept me going. I can now finish the 1 1/2 mile loop without stopping (unless I have to pick up his poop).