Riverbend Park - Great Falls, VA

Today we drove a few miles further up the road and took Riverbend Park as our starting point. Usually it's an about 2 3/4 mile hike upstream from Great Falls Park. This time I wanted to go further upstream to places we haven't been before. Of course I did bring the cam and so our pioneer excursion was properly documented. Two days ago, when we got drenched, we didn't go that far upriver. I hope you do enjoy the show (if you don't like the music, just click on the little speaker icon inside the picture and I would also recommend you view the images full screen)

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A Day in the Life of a Budelheimer - Part 3

The Furgang and the Kong

Another doggy friendly invention which makes a hu-woman's life easier: The Kong. Rumor has it that it was invented by a poor Labrador retriever owner who was looking to find a solution to his dog's rampant and destructive need of chewing anything and everything in sight. One day he caught his canine friend trying to take a car tire apart and failing. Thus the Kong was born. The man shaped the car's tire rubber into something else and called it a "indestructible dog toy" and made a fortune. More power to him and heartfelt thanks from my canine gang who is addicted to these rubber tubes now. As you probably all read, Miss Bicalina had to have lots of teeth extracted and therefore isn't so good in chewing bones anymore.Those were the days!

Our friend Barbara donated two of Beau's Kongs to the little fur-people. We purchased a third one, and an addiction was born. Since dogs love to chew and gnaw on things, this invention came in handy and the dogs have to earn half of their dinner now by extracting it out of the kong. You can see how they enjoy this pastime and they get more excited about their kongs than they get when you serve "just dinner" in the bowl.

Everybody gets their designated towel spot and off they go. I usually stuff the kongs with either raw meat or canned meat mixed with freeze dried beef/oyster chunks, cooked liver and joghurt. In other words: They basically get half of the dinner ration stuffed in there and to avoid bigger messes, I put them in the freezer. The satisfaction of working a kong is written all over their faces ! They really enjoy it and it gives them something to do.

It is also interesting to watch the pack interaction of all this. Every dog respects the other one's space. Bica is an exception of course, because her social skills are next to none. Due to her bad upbringing, solitary confinement probably most of her young life and lack of socialization issues, she knows no boundaries and waltzes all over the other two. What amazes me: Tessa and Rodney accept her as she is and she gets away with murder. They won't allow her to steal their kong, but they also do not act overly aggressive towards her. Our last pack was equally as harmonious together and I am really lucky that way. They all get along and they all really like each other. Kudos to Tessa again, who could kill one of her dachsie pals by simply sitting on them, but she is very sweet and considerate in dealing with those two. Something I can't say about her little slave driving counterparts. :)BTW: Doggy breakfast and dinner looks something like you see above. In that case it is a mix of "Honest Kitchen" (grain free) and beef heart. I try to feed as species appropriate as I can and since I do, the vet doesn't see us too often anymore. The dogs are healthy, the coats shiny, the digestion great and the energy up. Dry food is a thing of the past in this household ! They also get muscle meat, bones, organs, fish and bonemeal. To ward off ticks, worms and fleas, I mix a spoonful of virgin coconut oil in with the food and so far I've seen one tick crawling around on Tessa. That was it. Before we hit the woods, I take a small amount of coconut oil, rub it into my hands and go over the fur of the dogs. So far: No pesky insects have been seen ! Even the gnats hate it. :)

One of these days we'll go more detailed into dog nutrition, but I can give you one advice: If your dog has allergies, switch over to a B.A.R.F. diet and he will never scratch again ! (Sure beats "feeding" steroids, doesn't it ? )



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A Day in the Life of a Budelheimer - Part 2

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Mrs. Budelheimer's Revenge

Yesterday was a pretty wet day in Virginia. It kept raining on and off and fact was, we were going to get wet on our walk. There's no bad weather - just bad clothing, and so we bit the bullet and met our dear friend Barbara and doggy friend Beau for a walk at Riverbend Park. Yes - you read it right: We didn't go to Great Falls Park this time, but headed to Riverbend, which is a county park a few miles upriver from Great Falls. When we got there it was misting and really not too bad. About half an hour into our walk it all in a sudden started pouring ! It was raining cats and dogs and we were drenched after about a minute flat. Tessa and Beau were delighted about the refreshing shower from above and were bouncing around happily in the rain, splashing through puddles with a big grin on their faces. Not so the Budelheimers. Their demeanor changed from happy to morose the moment the first raindrop hit them and their only incentive was to get back home as soon as possible. Unfortunately, we still had about forty minutes to go and by the time we got to the car they weren't on speaking terms with me anymore. I was toast ! They pouted like only an unjustly treated dachshund can pout. After we got home I went to dry them off first in the garage so they could get into the house quickly. I really didn't want to get them more upset than they already were, those little slave drivers. While I was toweling off Tessa, I could hear them running and playing inside. All in a sudden it went dead quiet and I heard a paw scratching at the door from the inside. Monster demanded to come back out to the garage as if eager to get away from the "Misses".
When I went in to check the situation, I found the reason for his 'bad conscience':
Bicalina had left a poop pile in one corner and a pee puddle in the other. Madame didn't want to do business in the rain and had patiently waited to come home to do business in the comforts of a plushy and dry carpet.
So much for being housebroken. It all depends on the weather. Hu-woman was in for punishment and so I just went down on my knees and scrubbed the carpet............ *bigsigh*

She swore, she didn't do it ! Yeah - right. Serves me right for dragging them through the woods in the pouring rain, doesn't it ?









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The Whole Family Is Very Proud Of Tessa

Our girl Tessa always aims to please and so it is not too surprising, that she is the only one in our canine family who actually works for a living. The Budelheimers are not impressed, but the rest of us are really proud of the working girl. She's been visiting Powhatan Nursing Home in Falls Church for the past four and a half years and now hu-woman finally took the necessary steps for her to become a Pet Partner, registered with Delta Society (www.deltasociety.org)
I (hu-woman) have been involved with Fairfax Pets on Wheels for about 13 years now and had visited nursing homes with Tessas predecessors Purzi, Giaco and Daytona before. Also known as "the motley Crew":
Sadly, they are no longer with us, but Tessa was following in their footsteps and proves to be just as wonderful as they once were. (Oh how I miss them, though !)

The steps to becoming a Pet Partner involve more engagement from dog and handler, and is by far harder to achieve than being a visiting dog with FPOW (Fairfax Pets on Wheels). Also, volunteering for Delta Society comes with a price: Membership fees, extensive health screening and a well trained dog are a must. Those of us who have chosen that path are committed to spending some of their free time providing their dogs for therapy services and often working together with therapists to achieve ultimate results.Tessa and I have passed that test now and are looking forward to serving as a dog-handler team in animal assisted therapy.
Purzi , my little dachshund was honored once for her accomplishments as a Pet Partner after the 9/11 attack on the Pentagon. The two of us volunteered at the Red Cross Disaster Relief and could bring some comfort to those traumatized by the tragic events of that time.



















Here you see Giaco and Purzi bringing joy to a resident at the nursing home, and on theright is Purzi receiving her award from the city councilman. It was a very proud moment.


To get back to Tessa's achievements again: She has been volunteering an average of 20 hours per month at the nursing home and some additional time at different official functions representing Fairfax Pets on Wheels. She also serves as a neutral dog at FPOW temperament evaluations, where she's been doing that for the past four years reliably. The motley crew would indeed be very proud of her. :)
I chose to become a Delta Society Pet Partner for numerous reasons. One reason is the fact, that participants in that program are really serious about taking part in it. (Or why would anyone voluntarily pay $75 membership fee for nothing ? ) I also fully agree with their method of testing their new applicants. Makes perfect sense to me, that a handler has to have utmost control of his dog and the dog has to be nearly unflappable if one wants a safe dog around patients. There are pet therapy programs out there aiming for quantity of membership - not quality. Then, there are others that will only let you "worship" their organization and deny your (mind you: PAID !) membership, if you aren't willing to deny your affiliation with other pet therapy organizations. Without wanting to be critical: I am looking forward to find new challenges for Tessa and myself, without giving up on our seniors, who we've been visiting for a long time now and who have become very dear to us. Tessa is a very calm dog by nature and works best with people who interact with her and animate her a bit. Most of our seniors aren't able of doing that anymore and so Tessa says politely 'hello' and just as politely lays down at their feet and waits for further instructions. To keep her interested in the task at hand, I think it would be beneficial for her work ethic, if we get to work with patients who are a bit more active.

BTW - Mrs. Budelheimer, a.k.a. Bicalina heavily protested about not having been mentioned in this publication. After all, she did pass the Pets on Wheels temperament evaluation and occasionally gets to go visit the elderly. It just stresses her a little bit more than her big sister and that's why she only gets to go maybe once a month. I am also very proud of her for having overcome so much fear issues from the past and taking this huge step forward in her new life:Here we are with our dear friend Marie who has passed away just last fall. We all miss her very much and I am really glad that Tessa and I had the opportunity to be there for her, when she needed someone to hold her hand and ease her fears. Marie was a strong supporter of all the visiting dogs and over the couple of years I had known her, has become a very precious friend to me. I was able to stay with her to the very end and I know she could hear me talking to her, even when she was in a coma. It's of great comfort to me that I was able to be there for her.
The nurses at the ICU where probably wondering about the dog pictures that were plastered all over Marie's bed. I had found a beautiful 8x10 picture of her own dog Sadie, which I tacked to the foot board of her bed. Even though I was told she could not hear nor understand me, when I told her, that her beloved Sadie was now watching over her, she smiled.


And where is Mr. Budelheimer, a.k.a. Rodmonster in all of this you ask ? He can't do such un-macho jobs because it would ruin his bad reputation.......








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A Day in the Life of a Budelheimer - Part 1

......and yes - catering to these guys is slave labor. Poor Tessa just aims to please and doesn't understand their motives...













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