Who sustains serious injuries while at the dog park?

"Gud mornin hooman, why iz yew in bed?"

So, I'm laid up in bed today. Yesterday was unusually beautiful (sunny and 65 degrees in November? Yes, please) so I took advantage of the weather and went to the dog park with Dakota. Everything was going well - she made two friends who loved to rough house as much as she does. Then this ugly, annoying, pervert of a dog (and no, I'm not biased. It looked like a giant rat.) showed up and would not leave Dakota alone. Dakota loves just about everyone canine or human, but she WILL become aggressive if a dog is too much up in her lady parts or tries to hump her. It just doesn't fly with her, and I don't blame her. She kept barking at this dog, like, "Hey, back off perv, I don't like that." The dog was oblivious and so was his moronic owner, and Dakota was becoming increasingly agitated. So, I turned to shoo Dakota away from that dog, and as I turned back around, this beautiful, massive Rottweiler took off after a tennis ball and collided head-on in my shin. I'm talking 150 pounds of all muscle, hauling ass, connecting with my shin. I yelled a couple of expletives, and as soon as I was sure I could walk, we dipped out.

Omni Mom is wonderful, and took me to the ER. Nothing is fractured or broken, but I have a huge, bruised lump, and the bruising runs up and my down my leg. I'm on crutches and laid up to try to prevent worsening bruising. Awesome...

I wrapped this thing to death overnight...

This probably wouldn't have happened if I hadn't been distracted by a poorly behaved dog. So, fellow dog owners, please understand that the dog park is not a babysitting service. You need to be cognizant of where your dog is and what s/he's doing at all times... or else next time, I might let Dakota tear into your dog.

BARCStoberfest

My little brother and Mandi are visiting this weekend, and we took Dakota to BARCStoberfest earlier today. There weren't a ton of things for dogs to do, but there were plenty of vendors selling dog toys, treats, clothing, etc. At DogFest last weekend, we found Ruby & Bailey, a dog treat company. We bought the fall mix bag (apple and pumpkin flavored treats). Dakota loved them, so we picked up another bag of treats from them today. My favorite part of the festival, though, was that BARCS had adoptable pets out and socializing with festival goers. I wish I could have adopted all of them; we met several sweet, friendly puppies! Dakota and I dressed up, too. Can you tell who we are?

The Compassion Over Killing table had vegan food samples!
NOMNOMNOM.

Vegan hot dogs, too?!?!

Best friends.

DogFest 2011

On Saturday, Dakota and I ventured out to the Baltimore Humane Society in Reisterstown for their annual DogFest. The event was wonderfully organized with helpful volunteers wherever you needed them (at the bathrooms, most importantly!). There were great vendors and advocacy groups, too! Someone's birthday is coming up, so I felt the need to buy everything...

She's brilliant.

Spoiled rotten.

Maybe this will last longer than a week.

If you missed DogFest but want to get out with your puppy, don't forget about BARCStoberfest this Saturday!

A technicality...

As you are (hopefully!) well aware, Vegan MoFo is vegan food all day, every day for a month. And while today's food is technically vegan... I don't recommend you eat it.

I bring you vegan dog treats. I can't even remember what made me google vegan dog treats, but I did, and came across a few recipes that called for things I had on hand. I picked a peanut butter recipe, because I think the only person who loves pb more than I do is Dakota. I just bought some Halloween cookie cutters yesterday, too, so I thought it'd be cute to make some seasonally appropriate shaped treats.

You'll need:

- 1 1/2 C all-purpose flour
- 1 1/2 C whole wheat flour
- 2 tbsp oil
- 1 C water
- 1/2 C peanut butter

1. Combine water, oil, and peanut butter. Add flour one cup at a time. By the time I got to the last cup, I had to use my hands to mix it. Add a splash of water if necessary. Form a ball.
2. Divide ball into two halves. Roll out ball of dough, cut into squares/use cookie cutters/use glass to cut treats. Place on ungreased cookie sheet.
3. Repeat with remaining dough.
4. Bake on 350 for about 10 minutes. Baking time will vary depending on the size of your treats; just keep an eye on them!

Dakota loved them, and while I'm not sure if that's a good indicator as to how other dogs will like them because she eats just about anything, I felt better feeding her these natural and vegan dog treats! I ended up with about three dozen treats, so I bagged up some for a few doggy friends of ours!

Have you ever made your own dog treats or dog food? If so, please share your experiences! I'm interested in transitioning Dakota to a more natural/vegan diet, but I know little about it so far and would love to hear from other parents of puppies!

Mostly Dakota, some food

This weekend, Dakota and I visited my dad, who has about an acre of land. His front porch is approximately the same size as our entire backyard in Baltimore, so Dakota nearly lost her mind when she realized she could run. And run. And run some more. My dad lives on a quiet road, too, so we went for a nice walk!

Passed out with her elephant!

When we came home to Baltimore, we discovered that her new Molly Mutt bed had arrived. Yay! Her bed in my room consisted of two pillows on the floor, but that drove me crazy. I looked into ways to turn old pillows into a dog bed. This was a neat tutorial, but I don't sew. And really didn't foresee my self making the time or developing the interest for this bed, even though I know learning to sew would probably be a really handy skill. So the pillows stayed.

My mom discovered Molly Mutt, a website that sells stuffable dog duvets in a bunch of shapes and patterns. They have sooo many cute prints, it was really hard to pick one. I finally decided on La Vie en Rose because it best matches my room. Yeah, that was the deciding factor... I stuffed it with four or five old pillows and it turned out perfectly! Dakota loves it!

I ordered the medium bed, and when it arrived, I noticed it said it was suitable for dogs up to 50lbs. I didn't notice any weight indications on the website, but Dakota weighs 75 pounds. I was worried it would be too small, but as you can see, it's a perfect size!

Her whole body fits on the bed, she just likes laying half-on, half-off. 

Don't ask, because I don't know.

And so this isn't only about Dakota, here's a recent dish I made. Vegan Dad always posts the most delicious looking foods. I tried his Indian Potatoes and Spinach, and it was SO yummy! I really wanted to add chick peas, and thought about also adding green peas, but didn't. I think I will next time, which would mean the seasoning would need some tweaking, but I think it'd make it even better.

Things I Love: Pancakes and Puppies

Yesterday was a fun day! I slept in, which felt glorious, and made a quick brunch of pancakes and Lightlife sausage. I had a serious pancake kick this weekend. Chock full of carbs, they were delicious. These are the basic pancakes from How it All Vegan.

Yesterday afternoon, Dakota and I had a doggy play date with my friend Jen and her puppy Dexter. Dakota was happy as a clam, and slept like a baby when we came home.

Her face whenever she sees the leash.

Her tail was wagging at approximately 100 mph.

She loves car rides.