Holy Shit

Look what I just found in the basement storage room while cleaning!




Somehow seeing a stroller in my house makes things settle in more than hearing our baby's heartbeat did. Only 5.5 months until I get to meet our new roommate!

Back from La Crosse

I spent the week in La Crosse, WI for the 2010 Valkyrie Owners Association International Ride-In. The national ride was attended by approximately 75 great people who enjoyed the scenic roads near La Crosse.

I put about 1,300 miles on the Interstate. This pales in comparison to last year's total of 3,000 miles after the West Virginia Ride-In. We'll make up for it at next year's rally in Maggie Valley, NC!


Here are some random pictures of the Valks...

The Marmaduke Movie

Steph and I will be hitting up the movie theaters this weekend not to see the movie, but to help educate others about the realities of owning a Dane. We're hoping to avoid a glut of surrenderd Danes following their big screen fame as happened with Dalmations, St. Bernards, etc.

Despite the ferociously adorable antics we share about our Danes here, the reality is that they are HUGE, expensive, have many health problems, and live short lives. The average Dane female is about Daisy's size (120 lbs) and males are around 150 lbs. Without proper training (and you WILL need to train that dog to be a gentle giant, it does NOT happen naturally), 100+ lbs of dog can do serious damage to your house, its occupants, and other dogs. Along with the Dane's famous size, are infamous vet bills. Because these dogs are as big as humans, they require the same dosage as humans. Compared to small to medium dogs, this means a Dane's meds often cost triple what other breeds cost. Add these outrageous vet bills to the cost of food (Daisy and Pinky go through a $50 33 lb bag of premium food every 2.5 weeks) and large toys, and you just begin to see the high cost of loving a Dane. Danes also are known for having numerous health problems including blindness, deafness, hip displaysia, stomach problems, and many others. Most of these problems are the result of backyard breeding and puppy mills. Finally, on average, Danes will only live about 8 years.

That said, if you see the adorable, goofy giant in Marmaduke, read more about the breed, and decide that a Dane is still the dog for you, seriously consider adopting a rescued Dane. There are too many dogs out there already and the rescues make fantastic pets. Pinky spent the first 3 years of her life in a puppy mill's cage being continuously bred. When she was no longer able to produce puppies (she had cysts on her ovaries) she was sold at an auction. Luckily a woman bought Pinky and gave her to one of the local Dane rescues. She had fleas, intestinal parasites, a frost bitten tail, shredded ear from another dog, was filthy, and claws that had never been trimmed. In spite of all of this, Pinky has been nothing but the world's best companion since day one. She is honestly the sweetest, most loving, and best behaved dog anyone could ever hope for.

Please, think hard before you get a Dane. And if you are going to get one, get a rescue.

Visit one of your local Dane rescues and tell them Pinky Powell sent you!

http://www.gdromn.org/Home.html

http://thegreatdanerescue.com/

Where were you two years ago?

We were in Jamaica!

It was certainly a poor country, but incredibly beautiful as well.