March Already??

Wow, it's already March! I do not know where February went but am hoping that March will bring warmer weather. Friends tell me the almanac says March will bring more snow, lots of it. I've got a couple of foolish plants that are peaking up out of the ground. Last night a friend told me he'd seen a Robin, and this morning as I got in the car to go to work, I saw some geese flying north. Perhaps spring is on its way after all.

Maggie, 4 months

Among the many things I did last weekend, one task involved bathing the "3 girls," as the Raven-Whisper-Maggie trio is often referred to at our house. Their coats were blown dry and prettied up for a photo shoot. The girls were 4 months old on February 21. We have only 2 months to go before they are eligible to be entered in an AKC show. Unfortunately, that hits on Easter weekend so we won't be going anywhere until May. In the meantime as the weather warms up we'll do some lead breaking and try to get to the training classes in Peoria. With the high price of gas, I'm thinking we may not be able to get there as often as I'd like.

Raven, 4 months

A quick update on the new puppies: Secret is an excellent mom. The puppies are content and are eating well. Their eyes should open this weekend, and that is always a welcome milestone. We'll take and post more pictures of them once they are a little more photogenic.

Whisper, 4 months

Check out the website of the Illinois Federation of Dog Clubs and Owners at www.ifdco.org. Click the "Legislation 2011" link on the menu (on the right) to see the types of dog legislation coming before Illinois legislators. You can see whether IFDCO supports or opposes the legislation and why. Notice that individual dog owners can join IFDCO as a way to support the Federation's efforts in Illinois to "provide information and education to kennel clubs in Illinois and their members, dog owners, rescue community, and elected officials so that legislation and regulation will promote the health and well-being, appropriate care of all dogs, protect the rights and responsibilities of dog owners and breeders, and support responsible dog ownership." In other words, you don't have to show dogs or breed dogs to support this group! Its work is valuable to protect the rights of all dog owners. If you own a dog and want to protect your rights as a dog owner, for $25 you can join IFDCO and support its efforts. That amounts to a bit over $2.00 a month, an excellent value if you ask me!

If you are not from Illinois and are reading this, check your own state for a similar federation or go to the AKC's legislation page to find out what anti-dog legislation is cooking in your state. Go to www.akc.org and click "Government Relations" on the menu on the left or "Legislative Alerts" in the blue box in the upper right corner. Reading about anti-dog legislation gets scary sometimes and seems so off base that you wonder, "How can this be happening?" Unfortunately, in today's political climate, we've all been asking ourselves that question about a lot of craziness.

In the meantime, you know what I always say…

Life is good when you have a Lhasa to love you!

Joyce