Our "Kids" Walk On All Fours

I would like to properly introduce our four-legged family members.  While they don't help us out with too many projects around the house (actually, they add more projects to the list... dang those scratchy little paws), they do play a huge part in our lives.  So on that note, meet Panthro and Olive.

Ah man, there are those dang Twilight books again.  You'd think I had multiple copies.  Side note: this is the one and only time they've sat together like this and it lasted just long enough for me to get this picture.  Can't you just feel the anger in Panthro's eyes?

I don't like to get too preachy about anything on the interwebs, it's just not my thing, but I do feel like I should mention that they are both rescues... and it's October which is Adopt a Shelter Dog Month! I will always recommend checking out rescues when looking for an addition to the family but everyone's entitled to their own opinion and what works for someone may not work for others. We just happen to love mutts, especially our own!  That doesn't, however, mean it's been smooth sailing with either of them.

That ear just kills me.

We rescued Panthro (formerly named Juan Pablo) from a shelter when he was about a year and a half old. His owner had passed away and family members had brought him and his dog & cat siblings to a no-kill shelter when they couldn't find anyone to take care of them. Poor guy watched both of his buddies get rescued before him and he sat for months without an adopter.

Panthro loves fetch (his interest has dwindled as he's gotten older), "walking" on a leash and snuggling with all of our guests... especially the ones with cat allergies.

Olive (formerly Fergie... yeah, that name had to go) was rescued from animal services. She was picked up as a stray on the mean ATL streets at about four months old. She'd obviously had a rough time out there as she had some scabs and a damaged ear that has stayed half flopped over (we think she got in a tussle that left her with some cartilage damage). She also had worms and kennel cough... awesome.

Olive's puppy photo courtesy of Dekalb County Animal Services.  That face sold us!

Introducing Panthro and Olive was not easy... at all. I actually ended up in Urgent Care the first weekend we had Olive.  Panthro didn't take the new addition too well and four cat bites to the head later, my face was swollen and I was on antibiotics. I kinda looked like this.  Panthro also now has a permanent record as all animal bites have to be reported.  Yeah, my cat is a badass.  He will cut you.

Cat, you are invading my personal bubble.

We have no idea what Olive is.  Some people say Chow mix and I see it because of the fluff and coloring but she doesn't have the typical black tongue that Chows get (just one little spot that lots of dogs get). Some have said they see Shepard, others say Golden.  We think she looks a lot like a really random and rare breed mix called a Eurasier. But the chances of her actually being that mix (intentionally) are pretty slim.

Photo from dogsbreed.net

What do you think?  Maybe a Chow, Keeshond and Samoyed all had a wild night in some seedy Atlanta alley and a few months later we stumbled upon an accidental Eurasier. Who knows.

What we do know is that she's prey driven, a great watch dog and reactive.  What is a reactive dog?  Well, it basically means that lots of little things can "set her off."  It could be someone out walking that she thinks is too close to our house (again, great watch dog but it can be really annoying when we have to restrain her every time someone approaches the house.  I really hope this means she's doing a good job of keeping the bad guys away... yeah, that means you, guy who stole our lawnmower) or it could be seeing or hearing another dog or a cat while we're out for a walk. Things that don't bother other dogs can cause Olive to go crazy... pulling, barking, jumping. But it's all something we're working on and honestly, it could be something we work on for the rest of her life.

We're ok with that though because we made her a promise when we took her home that day.  We wanted to give her the best life possible.  She brings us so much joy and the least we can do is give some back in return.  Besides, look at that face!

So there it is, a proper introduction to our furry helpers.  Yeah, Olive got a little more press here than Panthro but even a cat lover can admit that dogs can be slightly more interesting than cats.  Sorry, Panthro.  Oh and if you just can't resist Olive's charm, you can actually follow her adventures on twitter... yes for real... at twitter.com/OlivePazuzu.

On the project front, we've got a bunch of things planned.  Painting, lighting, painting the lighting... way too much to list but definitely back soon with a new project.  We're actually off to Home Depot now.  Later!