I hope everyone has enjoyed and is enjoying the holidays. This year was special because we all went on an overnight getaway on December 23rd. We spent Christmas Eve day in a town called Solvang, which my mom and dad like a lot. It was great fun. Here's a photo of me in a giant shoe there:

On the way home, we drove through a holiday light display in a local park. I enjoyed looking at the pretty lights. Santa Paws visited and we got some nice treats.

Happy New Year!

This One's Better

Photo by Holt Haynesworth

Here Comes Santa Paws!

Friday night I got my photo taken with Santa Claus twice! I think it might have been two different ones. I only have one of the photos so far, but will post the other one when I receive it.

Photo courtesy of Falcon Theatre

Where Are Mom and Dad?

They've left us again! They went away a couple of weekends ago and now they are gone again. Luckily, my buddy Ren is taking good care of us, but it is lonely. Here's a photo Ren took with her camera and sent to my mom:


My eyes look kind of funny, but I think that's the light. I just miss my mom and dad!

Happy Birthday Cosette!

My sister, Cosette, turned 13 years old today! I tried to upload a new photo of her, but "the server is too busy." I like the way she acts like she is my "doggy mom." I hope she's around for a lot more years!

Charity Walk and Halloween Fun

Last weekend my mom and I did another charity walk. It was the Nuts for Mutts' 1st Annual Walk for Paws. We had a great time and met lots of nice doggies and people. I even met a new pal, Sandy who looked like a long lost brother. Check out this photo of us:

We were both in a costume contest. I wore my hot dog costume and Sandy was "Hairy Potter," complete with glasses. Neither of us won, but we had fun and that is what matters!

On Halloween I got to go to a fun event with my mom and dad. I wore my hot dog costume again and they work ketchup and mustard costumes. People loved it and lots of them came up to pet me. Here's a photo of us with some other condiments we ran into:

Rusty Collage

Weekend Outings

I had so much fun this past weekend! I got to go to my dad's film festival and hand out programs with my mom. We both wore devil horns! I met lots of people and had lots of compliments about my good behavior.

On Sunday, my mom and I participated in the 4 Paws for a Cure dogwalk to raise money for childhood cancer research. It was a beautiful day and a great time!

My Buddy Patrick

My buddy Patrick came over to visit me last night. How cool is that? He talked to my mom and dad too, but I think he was really there to see me and let me snuggle on his lap!

Happy Birthday Little Guy!

9 years old today!

Keep Your Paws Inside the Vehicle At All Times

My mom snapped this photo yesterday. While it certainly is "cute," we all know it is not safe. I'd never be allowed to do this whether I had my Doggles on or not!

Welcome Fall!

I'm not sure if it is really Fall where I live, but it has gotten a little cooler, especially at night. I've been feeling really playful after dark.

Yesterday we had lightning, thunder, and rain. I didn't like that so much, but the sun was out by the end of the day.

One of the problems of this time of year is the darkness in the mornings. All of us dogs snuggle in and my mom has a hard time getting up for work.

How to Help

There are lots of pets and animals that need help in the Gulf Coast region that was recently affected by Hurricane Katrina. Petfinder.com has set up a site with updates on rescue efforts, as well as organizations in need of donations.

Backyard Photo Shoot

My mom took some photos of us in the back yard this evening:

I'm looking very suspicious in this photo.

Little Guy's snout, up close and personal.

Side view of Cosette.

Evening Walk

The whole pack went on a nice long walk tonight. Yep, all 5 of us, my mom and dad, Cosette, Little Guy, and me. It was a good time. Perfect weather and lots of great smells along the way. I sure did work up an appetite!

Last night my mom and dad had a party in the backyard, but we weren't invited. We had to stay indoors. I would've liked to have visited with some of my friends, but it was a "no dogs" affair. There was lots of popcorn and other treasures we found in the yard today though!

Taking Naps

One of my favorite things to do is take naps with my mom. Little Guy and I jump up on the bed and snuggle with her. It's the best.

I wish my mom wasn't so busy and would spend some more time with me. I miss going to the park and going to work. Hopefully I'll be getting a job soon.

Dog Days of Summer

I wish I was at the lake...

Or the beach...


I think it would be much cooler!

I'm Back!

Well, honestly, I never went anywhere, but my mom did. She went on two back-to-back trips and has not been around to help me with the computer. I'm missed her so much and she only came home last Wednesday for a short time, switched out her suitcase and was out the door again! And the second time she took my dad with her too!

Us doggies survived, thanks to our good buddy Cheryl who fed us and gave us lots of nice petting. I'm just glad everyone is home now. It sure was nice to have the humans in the bed again last night.

P.S. Little Guy is doing much better and doesn't have to wear his cone anymore.

Little Guy in a Cone

My brother, Little Guy, got "the cone" last night. His left eyelid was red and swollen. We're not sure if he got into it with a squirrel or what. Later, he scratched at it and it was bleeding, so my mom found this cone to make him wear. He is not a happy camper.

Apparently, humans find dogs in cones to be quite humorous, but I don't get it. I feel bad for the little dude!

Pet Overpopulation Estimates from The Humane Society of the United States (HSUS)

Number of cats and dogs entering shelters each year:
6-8 million (HSUS estimate)

Number of cats and dogs euthanized by shelters each year:
3-4 million (HSUS estimate)

Number of cats and dogs adopted from shelters each year:
3-4 million (HSUS estimate)

Number of cats and dogs reclaimed by owners from shelters each year:
Between 600,000 and 750,000 -- 30% of dogs and 2-5% of cats entering shelters (HSUS estimate)

Number of animal shelters in the United States:
Between 4,000 and 6,000 (HSUS estimate)

Percentage of dogs in shelters who are purebred:
25% (HSUS estimate)

Average number of litters a fertile cat can produce in one year: 3

Average number of kittens in a feline litter: 4-6

In seven years, one female cat and her offspring can theoretically produce 420,000 cats.

Average number of litters a fertile dog can produce in one year: 2

Average number of puppies in a canine litter: 6-10

In six years, one female dog and her offspring can theoretically produce 67,000 dogs.

(from the HSUS website)

This post was inspired by an email proposition I received to father some puppies! Flattering as that may be, I am neutered and have no interest in adding to the already overpopulated pet world.

Do the right thing! Spay and neuter your pets! It's good for overpopulation and good for their health. My sister Cosette most likely would not have had mammary cancer if she'd been spayed at a younger age. Many communities have reduced-cost or even free spay/neuter programs.

(End Rusty's soapbox)

Here's a photo of me in the car after my outing last weekend. I was pretty beat! I could barely hold my eyes open! I was very happy though.

Where's Rusty?

I've really been slacking on updating this page. (I blame my mom!) I've been having some good times too. Last weekend my mom took me to a barbecue. I met some of her friends from work and saw some old friends too. The coolest thing about the event was that besides all of the cool people, there were 8 or 9 dogs there too! We were all pretty small and could run really fast. There was a lot of chasing going on! I won't mention some of the other dog-specific behaviors that were occuring.

I'd met one of the dogs, Annie, before. She is really cute and sweet! Below is an old photo of us playing at her house.

Besides running around and making friends, I hung out by the grill hoping they'd drop a hamburger or something! It smelled so good, but I ended up not getting anything good to eat. It was still a blast.

Annie chasing Rusty

Yesterday was loads of fun too! I went on quite an outing with my mom, dad, and good buddy/sometimes dogsitter Karen. We went for a long ride in the car...with the windows down (!) It was a very warm and sunny day...just perfect!

We ended up at this place where all of these cool artists live and make art. They had opened up their spaces for people (and their dogs) to visit, look at their art, and maybe even purchase something. Everything I liked was too expensive!

We walked and walked. I got carried a lot too, especially when we went into spaces with lots of people. I made tons of new friends and even met a few fellow canines.

When we got home I took a long nap under the dining room table and then on the couch.

My mom actually didn't get any photos of me on the outing, so here's an older one.

My buddy Cheryl's "nephew" Linus. I hope to meet him someday!

Linus is sporting the DogFather shirt Cheryl got for him when she came to cheer me on in my dog show!

Woof! I'm here and I'm fine! I don't think I've ever gone so long without updating this site. My mom has been really busy and since she's the one to help me do it, it just hasn't gotten done.

I've been enjoying good weather and playing in my back yard. I've been on some good walks, but could use more of those!

I'll hopefully be around to visit everyone soon!

P.S. For my friend Lorraine--happy to hear everything is going to be okay!

Not a Loser

...and not a winner either! Oh well...I did not win, place, or show in any of my Nuts for Mutts events. No big deal, though. I had a lot of fun and helped raise money for a good cause. My buddy Cheryl came to the show cheer me on. I made some new friends too! Most notably is Hidalgo, a cool terrier mix who hung out with me in the afternoon. He came to the show with him mom (a friend of my mom's), his girl, and a his girl's friend. They were all so nice!

Hidalgo

Here I am hanging out with my new friends.


My mom's favorite dog of the day! A little punk rocker entered in the "Best Dressed" contest!

Busy Weekend

My mom was off today. It was beautiful and sunny and we did spend some time in the back yard. We also napped.

My dad is out of town. I miss snuggling with him in the morning. My mom has to work tomorrow. Sunday is the mutts-only dog show I'll be in. It was a lot fun last year (even though I didn't win anything).

Here are a couple of photos from this afternoon:

Thank you sun for coming back out!

Rain, rain go away! We've had enough!

***EDIT 3/18/05: This event has been postponed until April 3rd due to the rain we are having all weekend***

Once again, I have been entered into the Nuts for Mutts dog show this coming Sunday, March 20th. It's a fun event in which only mixed-breed dogs can compete all in good fun and to raise money for a good cause.

I'll be competing in 2 categories "Best Chihuahua Mix" and "Most Ear-risistible Ears." Up to 30 dogs will compete in each category in a "qualifying round" and the top 10 of that round will advance to the final round of that category within that hour. The winner of each category will advance to "Best In Show."

Here's a link to the website with more information. All dogs are welcome to come to the fair with their owners, even if they are pure bred!

http://www.nutsformutts.com/default.asp

Happy Birthday To Me!

I'm 5 years old today. I came to live with my mom, dad, Cosette, and Little Guy four years ago today. I'm not sure if we will be celebrating later when my mom gets home from work, but I hope so. Last night we all went for a nice long walk together.

My mom was home sick today. She's feeling a little better. I think it's because I snuggled with her!

I replaced my photo in the post below of a better one of me with my new scarf. Here's Little Guy with his:
He won't "sit" with it on. He lies down and tries to sniff and chew on it! Cosette got one too, but my mom had a hard time getting a good photo. She has so much fur, it just gets buried!

My friend Kelly made the scarves and gave them to my mom and dad last weekend. They had a big party to celebrate their 10th anniversary and got some nice presents. The party wasn't at our house, but some relatives from my dad's side did come over to visit us and that was fun!

Lucky for me, it is now getting a bit too warm to wear my scarf a lot. I'm not complaining because I've been waiting for the sun to come out for a long time now!

Check out the cool scarf my friend Kelly made for me!

Welcome Back!

As of Friday, Cosette has been back in the house with us! She had all of her stitches removed and is healing well from her surgery.

See how happy she looks to be back in one of her favorite spots by the couch! And no more weird plastic thing around her head!

Cosette and I having a little reunion!

It's raining really, really hard here. We've even had lots of thunder and lightning too, which is kind of scary! Yikes!

I got to visit Cosette again today. I don't like the big plastic white thing she's wearing around her neck. I was kind of scared of it even. I got a little bit used to it and then kissed her a lot.

2 1/2 more days until she can come back into the main part of the house with us!

I got to visit Cosette last night. My dad thought it would be therapeutic for her. She was really happy to see me and we kissed a lot! We have a special bond and I love her a lot. Cosette treats me like the puppy she never had. Whenever I misbehave and get scolded, she runs to my side and kisses me.

A couple of photos from our visit:

Cosette went to the vet today and got her bandages and drain removed. She still has stitches until Valentine's Day, so we still can't play. She also has to wear one of those silly cone hat things if she's not being strictly supervised!

Little Guy and I have been pretty jealous of how much attention Cosette has been getting, so we've been acting out and being pretty wild. "Nutters" is the word mom kept calling us today. We're tired of getting locked in our crates or the back yard every time Cosette has to come out to go potty.

Acting crazy paid off and mom took us for a really long walk today to try to burn up some of the energy we had. I think it worked. I'm pretty tired now!

Cosette

Cosette had major surgery this morning. She is awake from it, but needs to be watched very closely the next few days. We are all worried, but anxious to have her home with us soon.

***Update 2/3/05 @ 12:24am: My mom brought Cosette home early on Wednesday evening. Little Guy and I had to wait in our crates while she brought her in. We can not play with her right now as she has to be quiet and heal. She is staying in part of the hallway/bathroom that can be blocked off with doors and a gate so we don't bother her. I miss her and hope she feels better soon so we can play.

The rain is on its way back.

My mom and dad are going out of town again.

It's gonna be a long week.

Maybe I'll just take a nap for a few days!

*** Update: Okay, now it's only in the 70's, but it's JANUARY so I can't complain!!!***

Hey Mr. Blue Sky!
I'm diggin' the sunny days and 80 degree summer-like weather we are having!!!

Rusty

Cosette & Little Guy

Photos by K

It's so cold and rainy here in California. AND my mom and dad went away for a few days, so there were no warm humans to snuggle with at night.

Thanks to our buddy K. though who took really good care of us. She took some photos, so maybe if she emails some to my mom, we can post one or two here. (hint, hint)

Stay warm and dry.

Mutts 'R Us

My mom and dad were looking through a dog encyclopedia at a local chain bookstore. Apparently, the latest term for dogs like me is "random-bred dog."

I don't have a problem being called a "mutt," "mongrel," "mixed breed," or whatever. But, random-bred dog??? Please!

Happy 2005!