I've Gone to the Dogs - Finally!

I had such a great weekend working with the shelter dogs! On Saturday, I took my mentoring session with "Shortcake," an adorable little pit bull. She is all white except for a black circle around one of her eyes. What a little sweetie she is! After the session, I took her for a nice long walk on a trail in the woods next to the shelter. It's about two miles and she loved every minute of it. Later, we went into one of the play yards, where she promptly plopped herself in the kiddie pool to cool off. So cute!

On Sunday, I took Shortcake for a nice 40 minute walk in the woods to give her some exercise, then we headed off to an adoption event at Bill's Wonderland of Pets. She was amazingly good in the car and spent her time either looking out the window or resting comfortably on the back seat. She was wonderful at the event, kids and adults were petting her and she was totally loving the attention and affection. What a great ambassador for her breed! She is very easy to fall in love with. So completely mellow. And such a good girl!

Yes, the big bad pit bull. Who loves to roll on her back in the grass while you rub her little tummy. While you do, she just lies there with this dreamy look on her face. I think she would stay in the position all day if you let her!

Since I still had some time, I decided to take Muggles, an American Bulldog mix, for a nice walk in the woods. He has a very sweet "smile," he's quite a charmer. Muggles is more high energy that Shortcake (he's also taller) so we moved along the trail at a much quicker pace. Being a bulldog, he made some pretty great "pig" noises! He is a favorite of the young guys who volunteer at the shelter. Must admit, he's one of my favorites too!

What's really cool about working at the shelter is that I feel like I'm getting back so much more than I'm giving. I know this sounds sort of corny but it's true. I love dogs. Since I only have little guys right now, spending time with the shelter dogs gives me my big dog fix. I'm out meeting new people (and dogs) and getting my own exercise while I exercise the dogs. It's all good! Then, and this is what really matters, it feels really good to be able to give a dog a few fun hours. It's wonderful to see how they respond to the little bit of love and attention I'm able to give. These dogs will make wonderful pets. I hope it's not long before they find their forever home!

I have definitely decided that Shortcake will be one of my project dogs who will get extra exercise, training and play so that she has the edge when families come in looking to adopt. I still have to choose my other "dog." It will not be an easy decision. They're all so sweet!

I seriously considered giving up on this Vegan thing yesterday, which was three full weeks, 21 Days. I feel like crap. I have absolutely no energy and just feel weird. Like I'm not getting enough nutrients. I'm tired of running to the toilet because there isn't enough time to walk. I'm sick of the mushed up food. I'm really not liking veggies at all right now.

I threw out all the leftovers yesterday. I'm not going to eat the stuff. I also tossed some veggies. I've eaten way too much eggplant and squash. I can't eat another bite. At least not any time soon.

Still, I had all this Vegan "meat" and realized I couldn't let it go to waste. I took the "ground meat" and made a pot of chili for dinner. It was okay. I actually felt a little better after eating it, probably because I finally had a meal with real protein in it, albeit Vegan protein!

I also have some Vegan chicken and a whole container of Tofu so I'm going to try to stick this thing out. I can't stomach the thought of eating any more gruel so I will have to pick up more Vegan "meats" to get me through these last 8-1/2 Days. It won't be easy.