Dog Treat Recipe- Breakfast Sausage Muffins

Breakfast Sausage Muffins

I use the Lightlife brand sausage in a tube for these. Some brands are not safe for dogs because they contain onions, so make sure to check the ingredients.

2 ½ cups flour
2 Tbsp. nutritional yeast
½ tsp. baking soda
1 Tbsp. ground flax
1 Tbsp. hulled hemp seeds (optional)
1 ¼ cups water
½ cup vegan breakfast sausage
2 Tbsp. maple syrup
½ tsp. liquid smoke

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray mini muffin pans with non-stick spray.

In a large bowl, combine flour, nutritional yeast, flax, wheat germ, hemp seeds and baking soda. Add water, liquid smoke and maple syrup, mixing well. Add sausage, again mixing well. Scoop batter into the muffin pans and bake for 30 minutes. Remove and let cool completely before serving. Store in the fridge.

Makes approximately two dozen mini muffins.

Variations

Biscuits- Reduce water by ½ cup and eliminate baking soda. Knead into a stiff dough, adding ¼ cup of flour at a time until it can be rolled out without sticking to the rolling pin (add a bit of water if it gets too dry). Roll out onto a floured surface to ¼ inch thickness. Cut with cookie cutters or knife and bake on a greased cookie sheet until crispy.

Cookies- Add ¼ cup of flour at a time until dough is firm enough to form into balls. Place dough balls on a greased cookie sheet and press flat with your hand or a fork. Bake until crispy.

Bagels- Make the same as the cookies except do not press them flat. Dip your finger in water and poke a hole in the middle of the dough ball. Flatten slightly to form a bagel shape. Bake until crispy.

Tattoo #6

My wonderful mother in-law gave me a gift certificate to the tattoo shop for Christmas, so I made an appointment for today. I've been wanting a paw print with a heart in it on my foot for a while. Now, my sweeties will always be walking with me. This is the first tattoo I got on the left side of my body, which gives it even more meaning to me. It's the only one on the same side of my heart. <3

Santa Paws Came!

Santa Paws, the very much loved pup of Santa & Mrs. Clause (who they adopted from their local North Pole rescue, of course), was very good to Emma & Rowan this year! Santa Paws comes on Christmas Eve because, after all, dogs come first, right? Since Emma & Rowan were very good girls this year, they got quite the loot. Their stockings were filled to the brim!

Since their outside fleece tug toy has been ripped to shreds over the last few years, they were very happy to get a brand new tug toy. They also got new tennis balls- two plain pink ones and two orange & pink ones with squeakers! Both of my girls are power chewers (especially Rowan) and their favorite nylabones are pretty worn, so they were very excited to get new ones. Their first Nina Ottosson interactive toy was one of their presents, too, which we'll be trying out with them soon. Stay tuned for a review on it in the near future! Besides all of the "fun time" things, they got some cute girly skull & crossbones collars and personalized blankies. We use a lot of blankets in our house for various things and Emma loves to be covered up, so blankets are always put to good use. Plus, the personalized ones are cute beyond words and such a great keepsake. They have a super soft "minky" side to make them extra snuggly.

Emma & Rowan laid down with their bones right away and after that, we had a nice play session with their squeaky tennis balls. As you can see, the blankets were also put to use right away.

Later today, we'll be having more play sessions and will take them for a hike through the snow in the state park that's near us. Tonight, we'll get nice & snuggly with their new blankets by the fireplace while watching a movie.

What did your pups get this year from Santa Paws and what will you be doing with them throughout the holiday weekend? I'd love to hear all about it!

No matter what you celebrate, I'd like to wish everyone the happiest of holidays! Peace, love and belly rubs to all!

Dog Treat Recipe- No Bake Peanut Butter Balls

These are extremely easy and fast to make. Even better, you can mix and match ingredients. Feel free to leave some things out, if you want (like the hemp seeds or fruit) or add your own ingredients. No raisins, though, because they are toxic to dogs.

No-Bake Peanut Butter Balls

2 cups natural peanut butter (chunky or smooth)
2 Tbsp. blackstrap molasses or maple syrup
½ cup nutritional yeast
1 Tbsp. ground flax
½ cup dried fruit (cherries, apples, etc.)
2 cups whole grain cereal (no sugar added) or oats
2 Tbsp. shelled hemp seeds (optional)

In a large bowl, combine peanut butter and molasses or maple syrup. Stir in nutritional yeast, flax, hemp seeds and dried fruit. Add cereal. If you have trouble mixing it all together, stick the bowl in the microwave for 30 seconds to soften it all up. Roll into balls (you can make them as large or small as you want) and store in the fridge in an airtight container.

A Snowy Adventure

If it weren't for Emma & Rowan, I would be pretty much housebound all winter other than having to go to work & run errands. Since I love them so much and want them to get their exercise, I find myself hiking, taking walks and playing in the yard with them on days when I would not venture out otherwise. Today was one of those days and although it would have been much nicer, in my opinion, if it was above 60 degrees with no snow or ice, it was a nice time.

We geared up the girls and drove a few miles to a nearby state park. It has several trails we can walk on, including the one we went on today. The trail winds through the sand dunes and gives plenty of opportunity to see Lake Michigan. Amazingly enough, it was not only sunny out but there was barely any wind (very rare for this time of year), so the 20 degree day didn't seem all that bad.
Emma can't wear her coats during play sessions or when we take walks because Rowan tends to try to play with her. That results in ripped up coats, so Emma had to make do with wearing her booties (which are from K9 Apparel, in case anyone is interested). We've made the mistake of letting her in the yard a few times without her boots on and her paws have become red & raw, almost to the point of bleeding in several areas. So, needless to say, we now put booties on every time. We kept up a good pace, which seemed to keep her warm enough because she didn't shiver at all. There were a few times when we had to stop to adjust her booties, though, because the front ones can start sliding off a bit.
Rowan gets very impatient with me when I stop to take pictures, especially if Mike is getting too far ahead of us with Emma.
We took a few short breaks along the way to not only adjust booties, but to take in the scenery. As you can see, Emma was quite happy to be on an outing. Rowan was just as excited and happy, but seemed to be more interested in trying to eat the dried up dune grasses that were popping up out of the snow. Deliciousness!
"Look, mama, isn't it glorious?"
Taking a break from having our arms pulled out of their sockets by two very excited pups.
Emma is looking off to where a few deer were. I think she smelled them but didn't catch a glimpse of them.
Rowan started to wear out just a little bit towards the end of the hike. She's got the sleepy eyed look going on.
When we got home, they ate some food (after all, a girl works up an appetite trudging through that snow!) and promptly took naps.

Another Early Holiday Present

About a week ago, a present arrived that I had to give to the girls right away. It was a bed from Zen Pawz and included a few surprises- both of the sprays they carry as well as some lavender collar charms. That really made me happy because I wanted to try them as well! The bed is organic cotton (the striped part) and kapok (the dark brown bottom) and the inside is a soft layer topped with organic buckwheat and calming herbs, like lavender. It smells terrific! The buckwheat gives it a bean bag type feel, which for almost the first week made Emma shy away from it. We kept putting her on it and gave her lots of love and some treats when she was on it, hoping to encourage her to lay on it on her own.

A few times after she was on it, she smelled like lavender, which I just loved. It's a pleasant smell, too, not overpowering. Same with the collar charms and "chill out" spray. Emma and Rowan each have a charm on their collars and they're really holding the lavender smell nicely, even with all of Rowan's romping around in the snow. I've sprayed the lavender spray around the living room & on their bed a little bit and it adds a very pleasant, relaxing smell to the room.

After several days of Emma still not going on the bed on her own, we turned it over so that the soft side was facing up. She started laying on it more and now is on it quite a bit, especially since we put one of her blankets over it. At night, we put it in our bedroom where Rowan slept on it once, but with the colder nights she usually prefers to sleep on the bed. I'm sure that once summer comes it'll get a lot of use in the bedroom, though.

Emma lets Sophie sleep on the bed, too. Sometimes it's right on the bed and other times she lays on Emma's pillow. Isn't she such a good sister? I'm glad that Sophie likes the bed a lot because I was having a hard time figuring out what to get her for the holidays! She never eats treats, doesn't care for catnip, has a ton of toys and pretty much everything a kitty could ask for. So, the bed is now officially Sophie's bed, too.
The rest of their holiday presents will be waiting for next Saturday morning. After all, we need to fill their stockings with something from Santa Paws!

Doggie Wisdom Quote

"Dogs teach us that listening includes an open, receptive, unguarded mind and heart in order to hear what is being said as well as what is not spoken."

~Sheryl Matthys (page 32 of Fido Friendly Magazine), author of Leashes and Lovers

An Early Xmas Present

Today, Crystal's heated pad arrived and I immediately plugged it in for her. It's super soft and seems to have just the right amount of heat to warm up those little bones of hers. She spends most of her "downtime" in the same corner by our entertainment center, so it was a perfect place to put the pad. She's been spending the last few hours on it and looks quite content.

Over the last week, she's been doing wonderful. She's demanding as ever, is once again purring on a constant basis and has been giving me heart attacks when I find her up on the counter. We've been really trying to discourage her from jumping, but she's stubborn (just like her mama). For the most part, though, she's been taking it easy and as long as her food bowl is never empty, she usually won't jump up on places. You see, if we make the horrible mistake of letting her food bowl go empty, she tends to jump up as level to our heads as possible so that we can hear her all the better when she yells at us to fill it.

Crystal kitty wasn't the only one who received an an early present, though. Mike and I got one of the best early holiday presents ever. To spend another full year with my sweet little kitten and have her comfy & happy is the greatest gift I've ever received.

Ponderings On Love & Speciesism

Over time, I've heard others say things about love that gets me thinking. A lot. I just find them deeply insensitive & disturbing. So, I find myself thinking a lot about love lately and specifically, how so many humans dole out their love and view that connection when it comes to animals. Plus, I'm feeling a wee bit ranty this week.

Let me start by specifically telling you the types of things I hear from others, and I'm sure that many of you have also heard them.

"It's just a dog."

"You never know how much you can love until you have your own child."

"The death of a pet should leave you sad, but still able to go to work and function. You shouldn't miss work to grieve for a pet."

There is more, but they're pretty much the same. What it boils down to is that most of humanity puts humans above animals and looks down on those that see them as equals. While they may love their companion animals in some way, it seems to be a disconnected love. They look down upon those of us that treat animals as equals. They think it's ridiculous when humans grieve for animals because, after all, "it's just an animal". For example, when Bruno died, Mike and I took several days off of work and most of the people that we work with knew why. When we came back, while a few people were sympathetic, we also received extremely insensitive comments. I've heard of many people secretly grieving for an animal companion because so many others just don't understand. I find this both heartbreaking and maddening. For others to downplay the feelings that someone has for another, whether that other is human or non-human, is deplorable.

I also find it extremely insensitive that some parents of human children feel that nobody can truly love until they have their own biological child. It offends me on so many levels. I'm adopted and although my parents have a strange way of showing their love to me, I know that they love me deeply. How on earth can anyone know the level of love that someone feels for another? The love I feel for Mike and my companion animals is desperately strong. For someone to suggest that my love for them is less than it would be for a biological child makes my head want to explode (like I said, I'm feeling ranty).

I would put my life in danger to protect any of those I love, human or non-human. How dare anyone suggest that my love is less than theirs? Shame on them! If anything, my bond with my animals is deeper than any human bond I've shared because of our non-verbal relationship. I truly believe that silence between two beings can form the deepest communication and feelings there are.

“Until one has loved an animal a part of one's soul remains unawakened.” ~Anatole France

Dog Treat Recipe- Maple Cinnamon Muffins

Maple Cinnamon Muffins

These are reminiscent of Sunday morning pancakes. Yum!

2 ½ cups flour
1 tsp. baking soda
2 tsp. cinnamon
1 Tbsp. ground flax
1 Tbsp. hulled hemp seed (optional)
¼ cup applesauce
¼ cup maple syrup
1 tsp. vanilla extract
2 cups water

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray mini muffin pans with non-stick spray.

In a large bowl, combine flour, cinnamon, flax, hemp seed and baking soda. Add applesauce, maple syrup, vanilla and water, mixing well. The batter will be thick. Scoop batter into the muffin pans and bake for 30 minutes. Remove and let cool completely before serving. Store in the fridge.

Makes approximately two dozen mini muffins.

Variations

Biscuits- Reduce water by ½ cup and eliminate baking soda. Knead into a stiff dough, adding ¼ cup of flour at a time until it can be rolled out without sticking to the rolling pin (add a bit of water if it gets too dry). Roll out onto a floured surface to ¼ inch thickness. Cut with cookie cutters or knife and bake on a greased cookie sheet until crispy.

Cookies- Add ¼ cup of flour at a time until dough is firm enough to form into balls. Place dough balls on a greased cookie sheet and press flat with your hand or a fork. Bake until crispy.

Bagels- Make the same as the cookies except do not press them flat. Dip your finger in water and poke a hole in the middle of the dough ball. Flatten slightly to form a bagel shape. Bake until crispy.

The Weather Outside Is Frightful

These pictures were taken today and in no way show the blizzard that we've been getting since last night in it's entirety. The strong winds and blowing snow just don't show up, so don't let the peaceful serenity of them fool you. Last night, it started to rain and within a few hours had turned into snow. Lucky us, having a sheet of ice underneath all of that snow. I'm not going to go out if I can help it because the roads are sheer ice! Wind makes me anxious for some unknown reason, so I was up for most of the night listening to it's howls and the snow battering against the house. Our fence held up, so for that, I'm very thankful.

Rowan is still very happy about the snow. Even though it's very hard & crusty from all of the rain (not snowman making snow at all), she has been asking to go out a lot today so that she can gleefully run around in it. Emma went out and immediately asked to be let back in. She was having none of it!

At 6:40 this morning, the power went out. Since the windows in the front of our house were covered with snow, making it impossible to see out of them, Mike went into the garage to look outside. Lo & behold, there was a downed power line, right in front of our house. I called the electric company to report it and bam! they were here in less than ten minutes. Now that's service! It took them several hours to fix everything, but finally, 4 1/2 hours later we once again had power. I'm very thankful that our house is as air tight as it is because it stayed relatively warm, despite the strong winds. I took a picture of one of the trucks working on the line. You can't see him in the picture, but there's one guy way up in one of those bucket things. I hope he gets paid dearly for having to work on a Sunday morning in a blizzard way up in the air like that!
Tonight, the blizzard continues and is supposed to die down a bit, then stop. The winds will be sticking around, though, bringing the wind chills to below zero temps. All this and it's still technically autumn!

We were going to go grocery shopping today, but that'll have to wait until tomorrow. Our cupboards are pretty bare, but we're inventive. For the rest of the day, Mike will watch the Green Bay Packers while I read on the couch next to the fireplace. Then tonight, we'll watch the season finale of Dexter. Is it so wrong that missing that show was one of my main concerns with not having power? I don't watch much TV, but there are just some shows I must watch!

I hope everyone is having much nicer weather than we're having. Stay warm, cozy and safe!

Another Crystal Update

Since I wrote my last update about Crystal a few days ago, things got very bad, then much, much better. All day on Sunday, she didn't move much. She stayed curled up in her corner by the entertainment center, sleeping or watching us. There were a few times when she got up to drink or eat, but she still could barely walk. I had to help her into the litter box, but I tried not to panic and kept telling myself that she just needed a few days to recuperate.

On Sunday night before we went to bed, she got up to eat and drink again, but then collapsed. I couldn't get her to stand up at all and when I touched her or tried to hold her, she screamed at me. My heart instantly broke because seeing her that way, I knew that it was probably my last night with her. She was obviously in a lot of pain. I called into work & while I tried to stay composed while leaving my boss a voice mail, I broke down, so I had to email him since there was no way he could understand what I said. Then I laid down with her on the living room floor and spetd the entire night with her.

I didn't sleep at all that night and felt like I was reliving my last night with Bruno. I told her again & again how much I love her and what a perfect girl she is. I cried a lot and hurt tremendously both physically & emotionally, but I would have increased that pain as much as it took if it meant that my sweet little girl wouldn't feel any pain at all.

Crystal got up a few times throughout the night and seemed to be walking just a teeny bit better, but I stayed leery, thinking it was my sleep deprived mind that was just being hopeful. Really, though, I didn't give up hope. Crystal kitty is a tough little bitty and love can do powerful things for the mind and body. When morning came, she no longer screamed at me when I touched her too near her hind legs or picked her up. She was still not walking very well, but was much better than the night before. I was hesitantly optimistic and immediately called our vet as soon as they opened.

Our vet, being as awesome as they are, told us to come in immediately. Again, I tried to remain composed as I told our vet what had happened since Saturday and once again, I broke down. She examined her a little bit, looked over what the emergency vet had faxed over and reassured us that there was plenty that they could do for Crystal. Surgery is an option, but we all agreed that at eighteen years old, putting her through both the surgery and recovery would be both high risk and not a fair ordeal to put her through. There are plenty of medicines that we can try with her, though, and we're starting with a nutraceutical to see how she does with it. It just happens to be the same thing we gave Bruno for his hip dysplasia and it really worked for him, so I'm optimistic about it working for Crystal.

So far, she has been doing great. She's starting to jump up on things, which gives me a heart attack and makes me immediately run to her to stop her from jumping down. We're putting her food on the floor for her and have rigged it so that the pups can't get to it (it was always kept on the counter in the laundry room for her, far out of reach from the pups). Our vet told us that a heating pad would help her a lot, so I ordered a heated pad that's just for kitties, which is on it's way. Until it arrives, we covered my heating pad with a blanket for her and she's been laying on it a lot (the picture at the top of this post). She seems much more comfortable, happy and from what I can tell, pain free.

I do believe that miracles can happen and cannot ask for a better present for the holidays than my baby getting better. I know that she won't be in my life forever, and I dread the day when that happens. All I want is for all of my sweeties to never be in any pain and for now, I seem to be getting my wish. I couldn't be more thankful or happy!

Dog Treat Recipe- Cheezy Baco Muffins

Cheezy Baco Muffins

Nutritional yeast gives these a cheesy flavor. Together with the baco bits, dogs cannot resist these!

½ container of vegan bacon bits
½ cup nutritional yeast
2 ½ cups flour
2 cups wheat germ or additional flour
2 Tbsp. hulled hemp seeds (optional)
1 Tbsp. ground flax
½ tsp. baking soda
2 Tbsp. blackstrap molasses or maple syrup
2 ½ cups water

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray mini muffin pans with non-stick spray.

In a large bowl, combine flour, wheat germ, nutritional yeast, baking soda, bacon bits, cornmeal hemp seeds and flax. Add molasses and water, mixing well. Scoop batter into the muffin pans and bake for 30 minutes. Remove and let cool completely before serving. Store in the fridge.

Makes approximately three dozen mini muffins.

Variations

Biscuits- Reduce water by ½ cup and eliminate baking soda. Knead into a stiff dough, adding ¼ cup of flour at a time until it can be rolled out without sticking to the rolling pin (add a bit of water if it gets too dry). Roll out onto a floured surface to ¼ inch thickness. Cut with cookie cutters or knife and bake on a greased cookie sheet until crispy.

Cookies- Add ¼ cup of flour at a time until dough is firm enough to form into balls. Place dough balls on a greased cookie sheet and press flat with your hand or a fork. Bake until crispy.

Bagels- Make the same as the cookies except do not press them flat. Dip your finger in water and poke a hole in the middle of the dough ball. Flatten slightly to form a bagel shape. Bake until crispy.

Crystal's Update- Good & Bad News

Several weeks ago, I posted about Crystal Kitty being diagnosed with an overactive thyroid. Last week, we brought her into the vet to have a blood panel done to see how she was reacting to her meds and couldn't have been happier with the results. Her thyroid level went from an 8 to a 1.6 and her kidney & white blood cell counts were terrific. The vet thought she looked great and she really seems to have calmed down overall at home. She even gained 2 ounces, which is significant for that short of time and her tiny size. We were ecstatic and so relieved.

Then yesterday happened. In the morning, Crystal was her normal self. She jumped up on her regular areas and was walking around doing the kitty things that she does. Mid afternoon, I went to pick her up and she started yelling at me, so I put her down. She was barely putting any weight on her right back leg and had a lot of trouble walking.

Since it wasn't regular vet hours, we immediately drove the 20 miles to the nearest emergency vet to get her looked at. I was afraid that she broke or fractured her leg because after all, she's 18 years old and has arthritis. Plus, at just shy of 6 pounds, she's very petite.

After three hours and x-rays, we found out that she has pretty severe hip dysplasia. That didn't surprise me, but it was still hard to hear. Bruno also had hip dysplasia, so I'm quite familiar with it. As soon as the vet brought the x-ray of her hips up, I knew something was very wrong. Up until a few years ago, though, she's been getting around like any other kitty. Even for the past few years, she's just been a bit stiff with her gait and can't jump up as high as she used to.

Thankfully, the vet didn't see any breaks or fractures, so that was a relief. They gave us some pain meds for her and we went home. Now the waiting begins to see if she gets better. She's still eating, drinking and going potty, but doesn't seem to be any better today. I'm hoping that she just needs a few days of rest. I just wish I knew what happened, but I'm assuming that she jumped off or onto something and somehow tweaked her hip. I just wish I could be the one in pain because it breaks my heart to see any of my sweeties suffering. I would happily take on the pain for them so that they never had to suffer in any way.

I'm just so sad and angry that this happened. It just doesn't seem fair to her to finally have her thyroid condition diagnosed and successfully treated only to have this happen. My spirit is pretty broken and down right now. My heart hurts, but I'll stay strong for my sweet little bitty. I love her so much and will do whatever I need to for her.

Happy 2nd Birthday Rowan!!

It's Rowan's second birthday today! We started the morning by sleeping in and snuggling in bed a lot. One of our favorite things to do!

When she first woke up and went outside this morning, we had our first accumulation of snow on the ground. She loves snow, so this was very fitting today! It all melted by the afternoon, but I'm sure more snow won't be too far behind. Rowan will be romping around in it soon enough! After she came in, we found that Freaky Dog People had sent her a birthday email and featured her on their birthday blog along with another adorable pup.
She spent part of the morning lounging around with her sister on her new Hello Kitty blanket. They had a sort of morning slumber party.
After they got to run errands with us, we came home and both of them watched me very intently as I made Rowan's birthday treats- peanut butter carob crackers.
Then, to work off some of those birthday treat calories, we went outside with a couple of new pink tennis balls and had some fun. Emma will chase the balls, but mostly just wants to walk around squishing them with her mouth. Rowan, on the other hand, is all about chasing them until she's worn out.
Tonight, we'll watch a movie and snuggle on the couch and tomorrow, the festivities will continue!

Happy birthday my sweet little wiggle butt. Mama loves you so much!!

Dog Treat Recipe- Gingerbread Muffins

Gingerbread Muffins

These are a delicious, healthy treat that are great for making any time of year!

2 cups flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1 Tbsp. ground flax
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 Tbsp. hulled hemp seeds (optional)
2 tsp. ginger
1 tsp. vanilla extract
2 Tbsp. applesauce
¼ cup blackstrap molasses or maple syrup
1 ¼ cups water

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray mini muffin pans with non-stick spray.

In a large bowl, combine flour, flax, baking soda, hemp seeds, cinnamon and ginger. Add applesauce, vanilla, molasses or maple syrup and water, mixing well. Scoop batter into the muffin pans and bake for 30 minutes. Remove and let cool completely before serving. Store in the fridge.

Makes approximately two dozen mini muffins.

Variations

Biscuits- Reduce water by ½ cup and eliminate baking soda. Knead into a stiff dough, adding ¼ cup of flour at a time until it can be rolled out without sticking to the rolling pin (add a bit of water if it gets too dry). Roll out onto a floured surface to ¼ inch thickness. Cut with cookie cutters or knife and bake on a greased cookie sheet until crispy.

Cookies- Add ¼ cup of flour at a time until dough is firm enough to form into balls. Place dough balls on a greased cookie sheet and press flat with your hand or a fork. Bake until crispy.

Bagels- Make the same as the cookies except do not press them flat. Dip your finger in water and poke a hole in the middle of the dough ball. Flatten slightly to form a bagel shape. Bake until crispy.