Ya'll know how I LOVE my dogs. The other day I watched Oprah's segment on Puppy Mills and even though I knew much of what goes on in these places, it was still so haunting to watch. We got my baby Oscar from The Coleman County Humane Society last summer and he has been the joy of my heart. Those of you who know Oscar might find it hard to believe why we love him so much...he chews up our stuff...he growls and barks at strangers...he is my shadow-very clingy and needy. But despite all of this-he is pure love. After watching Oprah's show, I emailed the humane society to ask about his living conditions at his back yard breeder where they rescued him, his siblings, and his Chihuahua mother. Here is a clip from that email:
"Hi, Laurie. So nice to hear from you and Oscar. We are very happy that Oprah has done the puppy mill show. A real boom!
Oscar was one of an overflow of Pom puppies from a lady on the edge of town. They had a messy junkyard and several outbuildings around their house. I was appalled when she showed me where she was keeping Oscar in one of the filthy outbuildings with just a tiny bit of light so he wouldn’t breed one of her females. She had a breeding sire (Oscar’s dad, Bear) and the other males she didn’t care so much about although they were fed and watered. Her husband finally said “enough,” and we got three dogs from her at first, then Oscar, the last one she was willing to part with. I heard later that one of the ones we wanted so bad was run over and killed in front of their house. I haven’t heard from her recently, so maybe they’ve quit breeding."
Here is Oscar's birthmother, Missy.
And siblings. 
Oscar was 8 months old when he was rescued, so he lived his life in a box in the heat and cold of East Texas. According to the Oprah show, many of these breeders do not walk their dogs or let them out of their crates. They feed and water them but do not bathe or brush them. They typically keep 1-2 male dogs and will dispose of the rest. Who knows how many litters Missy had, most vets would say that small dogs should have only one litter in their entire life, but the healthiest is for them to have none.
So no wonder Oscar is such a pest- look at his early life, he was not socialized, not cared for or loved.
Summertime is a time when many people get puppies. They have more free time and often will go to pet stores or breeders in parking lots to get a brand new puppy. Please DO NOT do this. It only encourages breeding and inhumane treatment of animals. Go to a local shelter, contact your Humane Society or go to http://www.petfinder.com/, which is where we found Oscar. There are many pure bred rescue groups out there too. Puppies are cute but they are difficult to train and often times people will end up dumping the dog off on someone else when it grows out of the cute stage and into the annoying one (which is usually 6 months to 2 years old). This cute little image reminds us that our pets deserve to be with us until they die. 
We got Lucy at 8 weeks old from the pound, her litter had been dumped off because people had not spayed and nuetered their dogs. Please do this. Even if you think your dog will not get out, a dog in heat will find a way. The Coleman County Humane Society is currently offering free spaying and neutering for big dogs and there are many low cost places in every city.
Here is a link to see Oscar's update on their website!
I always wanted a dog. I begged my parents to get a dog all through my childhood and had a collection of stuffed animal dogs, pound puppies, you name it-if it had floppy ears and a tail-I wanted it! But it wasn't until I married that my wish came true! I'll try not to put too much "eternal significance" on my love for my pets. But I have known many people who's lives were touched by their little four-legged friends and they grieve their deaths deeply. To love a dog and to be unconditionally loved back is a beautiful thing. Don't let a little extra fur and mess keep you from not owning a pet, and please get a rescue animal!! They need a home and family to love them.
Our dogs are a part of our family in every way.
I suppose the humane society didn't know Oscar was going to be Donald Duck for his first Halloween! Ha!
He begs for chocolate milk and we do let him have these treats occasionally. He scoffs if I put any green vegetable on his plate asking "do I have to eat that?" Of course he does, but he still has to ask every time. Well the first little mommy victory happened when he asked for a snack after nap and I handed him a small ramekin filled with baby carrots. He said "I don't like these." and I said "that's okay, but that is your snack today if you get hungry." "I need dip." he countered. So I poured some light italian dressing in one corner of the bowl and left the room. He came to me a few minutes later saying he needed more, I thought he meant dip-thinking surely he just used the carrots as a way to lick the dip, but when I looked in his bowl the carrots were gone! He had a huge grin on his face so I praised him, filled the bowl again and off he went happily munching. That made my day! 
The only downside of all this is that my grocery bill is out the roof! Fresh produce and unprocesed meat is not cheap and wheat products are supposed to be going UP in price with gasoline! Great. But I think we must be keeping Cascadian Farm in business because they keep coming out with great products.
Do not let the fact that you have to make veggie purees for each recipe throw you off. I did these for about 9 months when I made Vivi's baby food and it really is not that hard to do. So even though my child is getting to the age where his peers are consuming toaster strudels and sugar cereals, Capri Suns and potato chips, I plan to press forward even if I end up having to sneak the vegetables in!
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