Bark Magazine

Jasmine's pic was chosen as a sample cover for Bark Magazine!! =D I love that pic! She's such a happy girl. (and she LOVES going to the duck pond!)

Semi-Finalist in OPIN's video contest!

LOL... this video always makes me laugh! It's called "Peanut Butter- one bite lasts all day!"

This is one of the videos I submitted to OPIN's video contest! (OPIN= Outreach to Pets In Need) And good news!! I just got an email that it was chosen as a semi-finalist!! So they are going to show it at their Pet Tail Video Awards Gala on April 15th! They listed it in the "Best Musical" category. (Which is humorous, considering it's not technically a musical!) But it does have music- and it was the perfect song choice for this video! ;) So that was sure exciting to be nominated!
All the proceeds benefit the Stamford Animal Shelter and Outreach to Pets In Need.
It's such a good cause, I encouraged all my doggy friends to submit videos. The more money they can raise- the more doggies get a chance to find their forever home. :)



So.. I looked up the other entries in the OPIN contest under our category. This one is awesome! Don't get me wrong, my peanut butter one is cute. But I'm still betting that this one wins in the "Best Musical" category. And I'm completely okay with it! I LOVE IT! The lyrics make me laugh! LOL!!! I would vote for it!!! =D

"Kittens are FLUFFY!!!" LOL

Vacation Time!

This past week, I went on vacation!! :)

Sadly, my cute little puppy couldn't join me, but my roommate took good care of her! My first day away from home, my roommate sent me a text message that said:

"Jaz wouldn't sleep in my room. 6 am- she came in crying. I'm pretty sure she has abandonment issues! She was letting me know you missed curfew and I need to go find you. I tried to explain, but she watches the front door faithfully, waiting." Poor puppy!!


Pretty soon though, Jaz learned that if I'm not home, she can bend the rules! Like begging for steak from my roommate! We call this her "Jedi Mind Trick". She gives you this "look"... and although I am most times strong enough to resist... others aren't so lucky! ;)



While I was on vacation, I went to visit my family out of state. I got to spend some time with their dogs! My aunt has a cairn terrier named Mandy. And my cousins have a "schneagle" (a schnauzer/ beagle mix) named Sadie.









My little cousin has started teaching her puppy tricks too! I think it's awesome! Her dog is only 10 months old, and is already pretty talented!
Go clicker training! =)



I also got to go skiing while I was away. (One of my FAVORITE things to do!!) Of course I was fascinated when I caught a glimpse of this pup on the ski slopes! This lab was training to be a search and rescue dog! I was going down the slope and he was going up... so I didn't get a chance to talk to him. But it was pretty cool seeing them in action!
I would love to do something like that.
(Although Jaz would never go for that! She doesn't even like to go outside when it's raining!) ;)

Video contest- supporting OPIN

Outreach to Pets in Need (OPIN) is hosting a video contest! And they just extended the deadline until March 20th! http://opinpets.org/pet-tail-2011/ This is such a good cause... they help place pets in forever homes. So consider making a short video of your pet! (Between 30 seconds and 3 minutes.) The more entries they get, the more successful their Pet Tails Awards Gala will be! Here's the categories you can enter:

• Best Rescue Tail
• Best Pawformance
• Best Real Life Tail
• Best Belly-Rubbin' Comedy
• Best Musical Tail

Check out the website for more details. This is the video I sent in. (Because I didn't have time to make a new one!) lol. Nothing like recycling! (I changed the music!) So it feels different! ;) This is the first video I made of "Dog Goes Shopping". Obviously the 2nd one is way better- with a much more complex story line! But it was too long to enter! So... I had to go with the 1st one. ;)

Tsuami in Japan

If you haven't heard already, a 8.9 magnitude earthquake happened off the coast of Japan today. This created a huge tsunami that swept across northern Japan. When I watch the video, my heart just goes out to them. It reminds me how precious life is. And how we need to spend more time focusing on what truly matters in this life. Stuff is just stuff. Things are replaceable. Our relationships with our family and close friends are what we need to focus on. Sometimes we get so wrapped up in the day to day busyness of life, that we forget to tell and show those around us how much we care about them. Your most important asset is your time. So spend it with those who matter most.
My thoughts and prayers are with the people in Japan today.

Animal Planet

For those of you who don't know, Animal Planet has a Wall of Fame on their website!

And Jasmine got picked to be on it!! :)

http://blogs.discovery.com/wall_of_fame/2011/03/paradise-pooch.html

There is a link right under it, if you want to submit your dog too!! :)

Fit as Fido blog contest winner!

Last month we entered a contest on the Fit As Fido blog- and we actually won!! (That rarely happens!!) So yesterday in the mail, we received the agility book "From the Ground Up". I'm excited to start reading it, because Jaz really needs some help with her weave poles! And the tunnel- sometimes she goes in, but then comes right back out! And sometimes she jumps off the A-frame and misses her contacts! So... this seems like the perfect book for us! =)

Then I found out we were mentioned on their blog! (Which is pretty cool!!)

http://www.fitasfido.com/2011/03/06/cj-and-jasmine-get-from-the-ground-up/

I had sent her some pics of when Jaz first started agility. (My favorite picture is when Jaz decided to walk ON TOP of the tunnel instead of inside it!!) LOL. Silly puppy!! :)

I can't wait to read this book and find out what it says! =)

Stylish Blogger Award! :)

First of all-- THANK YOU so much to Lulu and Wally (http://www.lifewithlulu.com) for recommending us!!! :D The rules for accepting the award are to thank the person (or pups!) who gave you the award, share 7 things about yourself, link to 15 recently discovered bloggers, and contact them to tell them about the award.

7 things about me & Jasmine:

1. Jasmine and I just had our first agility competition last weekend! (which I was really excited about!) This is a whole new world for me, so we're still figuring it out! (especially the terminology!) But it's sure fun!! =) Jasmine got 3rd place twice, and got her first Q in P1 Jumpers! (See post below this for more details and the video!)

2. Jasmine ALWAYS sleeps upside down. (if she's completely relaxed.) And almost every night, she steals my pillow! (But then will more over to make room for me when I go to bed.)

3. Every day when I come home from work, it's the same greeting. Jaz greets me at the front door to say hi, then runs off to get a toy in her mouth. Then I am expected to chase her around the coffee table and couch for about 3-5 minutes. This game is called "Rah!" She remind me of an Arabian horse when we play this, because her tail is high in the air.

4. I just got asked to be a speaker at the BarkWorld Expo... which is quite an honor! And I get to bring Jaz!! =D http://www.barkworldexpo.com/ We're going to speaking about Jasmine's experience being a "working dog". (Commercials, photoshoots) And how it all came about because of social media! (Mainly YouTube and Facebook!)

5. Jasmine just got a new agent in California! (Top Dog Talent Agency) So she's now listed on the homepage of their website!! http://www.topdogtalentagency.com/

6. Jaz is clicker trained, and knows a ton of tricks and behaviors. And we go to a children's hospital every Friday to volunteer as a dog therapy team. We go room to room, and say hi to each of the kids. They get to pet her, and say hi. Then Jaz will start pawing me, which means it's time to start the trick show! (Because she wants her treats!) The kids absolutely love it. This is probably the highlight of what I do with Jaz. There is something about a dog that can bridge the gap between strangers.

7. I'm currently writing a book about all the valuable life lessons I have learned through my experience with Jasmine. A section of it is published every other month in the Havanese Breed magazine. (This was a good opportunity for me... because I've been wanting to write this book for a while, but when do you make the time?) So by having small, realistic deadlines and goals, it's helping me accomplish my much bigger goal! And pretty soon, I'll be able to combine it all together into a book! :) My style is somewhere in between two of my favorite authors: John Grogan (Marley & Me) and Mitch Album (Tuesdays with Morrie, Have A Little Faith).

Here are 15 other dog blogs that I enjoy:

1. Just Jesse http://justjesse197.blogspot.com/
2. Sparky! http://sparkybarky.blogspot.com/
3. Kirby the Dorkie http://www.kirbythedorkie.com/
4. The Pawkeepers http://pawkeeper.blogspot.com/
5. The Other End of the Leash http://www.theotherendoftheleash.com/
6. Susan Garrett's Agility http://susangarrettdogagility.com
7. Karen Pryor's blog http://www.clickertraining.com/blog
8. Dog Nerd 101 http://dognerd101.blogspot.com/
9. Fun 4 Fido http://www.fun4fido.co.uk/blog/
10. Pam's Dog Academy http://ptfordogs.blogspot.com/
11. Responsible Dog http://responsibledog.wordpress.com/
12. 2 Pitties in the City http://pittiesincity.blogspot.com/
13. Dogmantics http://clicktreat.blogspot.com/
14. Get Pawsitive http://getpawsitive.blogspot.com/
15. Miki Saito (Blind Dog Trainer) http://blinddogtraining.com/

Cute Dog Daily

Jaz was picked to be featured on the Cute Dog Daily website. I had mentioned this on her Facebook page- Jasmine (My Favorite Pup)- and said that she had a chance to win Dog of the Month if people left a comment. And wow- so many people left such nice comments!!! Thank you all so much!!! Jaz always brings a smile to my face, and it makes me feel good that she has the same effect on you too. :)

http://cutedogsdaily.com/2011/03/04/jasmine-the-havanese/